PSG holds victory parade in Paris with Champions League trophy after overnight violence
Associated Press
PARIS (AP) — Triumphant after its historic Champions League victory, Paris Saint-Germain put on an open-top bus parade through Paris on Sunday for roaring fans, an outburst of joy overshadowed by the death of two people and some 200 injuries in overnight celebrations.
Brandishing their trophy, the winners of European club soccer's biggest prize arrived in Paris on Sunday after their 5-0 win over Inter Milan in Munich on Saturday night, and headed to France's most famous avenue: the Champs-Elysees.
PSG fans waved blue and red as they waited for the team bus to arrive. As the parade started, the atmosphere was calm as fans stood behind barriers with a long line of riot police in front of them.
They roared when the bus came into sight and captain Marquinhos brandished the trophy over his head, then passed it down to other players, some of whom wore sunglasses. Coach Luis Enrique joined in with the fans as they sang one of the club's anthems, and star forward Ousmane Dembele blew kisses.
The overnight fatalities marred a night of exuberance after PSG clinched its first — and long-awaited — Champions League title. The Eiffel Tower glowed in team colors, and fans partied through the night. 'Isolated acts'
The team denounced the violence. The title 'should be a moment of collective joy,' PSG said in a statement. 'These isolated acts are contrary to the club's values, and don't at all represent the immense majority of our fans.'
The overnight celebrations were largely peaceful but degenerated into violence in some areas.
A 17-year-old boy was stabbed to death in the western city of Dax during a PSG street party after Saturday night's final in Munich, the national police service said. A man in his 20s was killed in Paris when his scooter was hit by a car during PSG celebrations, and the driver has been detained, Paris police said. The circumstances of both are being investigated.
A police officer was hit accidentally by fireworks at a PSG gathering in Coutances in northwest France and placed in an artificial coma because of grave eye injuries, the national police service said. A total of 201 people were injured around the capital, four of them seriously, the Paris police chief said.
In the Alpine city of Grenoble, a driver ran into pedestrians who had gathered for a PSG celebration, injuring three or four people, the regional prosecutor's office said. It said the driver was detained. The city also saw fans throwing projectiles at firefighters and police using dispersion grenades. Light show
The team and French officials are hoping Sunday is about the victory instead of violence. Up to 110,000 people were allowed along the iconic, tree-lined Champs-Elysees avenue for a parade. Later, the team will join fans in PSG's home stadium, the Parc des Princes, for a concert and light show and official presentation of the Champions League trophy.
A wide swath of central Paris was closed to traffic for the exceptional day. The security measures are also impacting the French Open unfolding nearby.
Thousands of police were deployed to keep order, and will employ similar tactics as they did Saturday night, Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told reporters. AP reporters saw tear gas used near the stadium and water cannons used near the Arc de Triomphe to disperse rowdy crowds Saturday.
In addition to the injuries and arrests, Nunez said four stores were looted overnight. Firefighters were so busy extinguishing garbage can fires in the middle of celebrations and dealing with other emergencies that the fire hotline was overloaded.
By 2 a.m. Sunday, a total of 294 arrests had been made, including 30 people who broke into a shoe shop on the Champs-Élysées. Two cars were set alight close to Parc des Princes, police added.
At the Place de la Bastille, there were joyous scenes as fans climbed onto the base of the famous column, singing, dancing and letting off flares, while those around them joined in.
At one point, motorbikes loudly revved their engines and the crowd cheered as they did laps around the column. There were no police nearby and, by 1 a.m., the atmosphere was upbeat with no tensions and plenty of singing.
Nunez blamed the scattered troubles on 'thousands of people who came to commit acts of violence' instead of watching the match. He noted similar unrest on the sidelines of prior celebrations in the capital, such as after France's World Cup win in 2018.
___
John Leicester contributed to this report.
___
Follow AP's soccer coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/soccer in this topic
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
7 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Gonzalez and Williams homer as Miami takes Hattiesburg Regional 5-4 over Southern Miss
Associated Press HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Dorian Gonzalez Jr. and Derek Williams hit home runs and Miami won the Hattiesburg Regional with a 5-4 decision over Southern Mississippi on Monday night. The Hurricanes go to the best-of-three Louisville Super Regional with a College World Series berth on the line. The Cardinals won the Nashville Regional hosted by No. 1 overall seed Vanderbilt. Southern Mississippi, which lost its regional opener to Columbia 11-4, got revenge for that game with an 8-1 win and Sunday night topped Miami 17-6 to force the deciding game. Miami (34-25) had nine hits and they were bunched well. Williams had a solo home run in the first inning. In the fifth, after a two-out single by Michael Torres, Jake Ogden had an RBI double and Max Galvin drove Ogden home with a single to make it 3-1. Gonzalez had his home run leading off the sixth and then Torres had a two-out single for a 5-1 lead. Matthew Russo had a run-scoring single in the fourth to tie the game and Tucker Stockman drove in a run in the seventh for the Golden Eagles (47-16). Carson Paetow hit a two-run, two-out homer in the ninth before Brian Walters got the last out for his 10th save. Will Smith (3-0) pitched the middle three innings for the win. Matthew Adams (6-4) gave up three runs in 4 2/3 innings but struck out nine. Landen Payne pitched the last three innings, allowing a hit and with five strikeouts. ___ AP college sports: recommended
Associated Press
11 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Israel says 3 soldiers killed in Gaza in deadliest attack on its forces since a truce ended in March
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military said Tuesday that three of its soldiers were killed in the Gaza Strip, in what appeared to be the deadliest attack on Israel's forces since it ended a ceasefire with Hamas in March. The military said the three soldiers, all in their early 20s, fell during combat in northern Gaza on Monday, without providing details. Israeli media reported that they were killed in an explosion in the Jabaliya area. Israel ended the ceasefire in March after Hamas refused to change the agreement to release more hostages sooner. Israeli strikes have killed thousands of Palestinians since then, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 people hostage in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel that ignited the war. They are still holding 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israel's military campaign has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence. Around 860 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the Oct. 7 attack, including more than 400 during the fighting inside Gaza. ___ Follow AP's war coverage at
Associated Press
24 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Suspect planned to kill all in group he called 'Zionist,' but appeared to have second thoughts
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — A man in Boulder disguised as a gardener who wounded 12 people in an attack on a group holding their weekly demonstration for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza had planned to kill them all but appeared to have second thoughts, according to authorities. Mohamed Sabry Soliman had 18 Molotov cocktails but threw just two during Sunday's attack in which he yelled 'Free Palestine,' police said. He didn't carry out his full plan 'because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before,' police wrote in an affidavit. The two incendiary devices he did throw into the group of about 20 people were enough to wound more than half of them, and authorities said he expressed no regrets about the attack. The 45-year-old Soliman — whose first name also was spelled Mohammed in some court documents — planned the attack for more than a year and specifically targeted what he described as a 'Zionist group,' authorities said in court papers charging him with a federal hate crime. 'When he was interviewed about the attack, he said he wanted them all to die, he had no regrets and he would go back and do it again,' Acting U.S. Attorney J. Bishop Grewell for the District of Colorado said during a news conference Monday. Federal and state prosecutors filed separate criminal cases against Soliman, charging him with a hate crime and attempted murder, respectively. He faces additional state charges related to the incendiary devices, and more charges are possible in federal court, where the Justice Department will seek a grand jury indictment. Soliman is being held on a $10 million, cash-only bond, prosecutors said. His next court hearing is set for Thursday. An FBI affidavit says Soliman told the police he was driven by a desire 'to kill all Zionist people,' a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel. Soliman's attorney, public defender Kathryn Herold, declined to comment after the hearing. Soliman was living in the U.S. illegally after entering the country in August 2022 on a B2 visa that expired in February 2023, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on the social platform X. The burst of violence at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall in downtown Boulder unfolded against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war , which continues to inflame global tensions and has contributed to a spike in antisemitic violence in the United States. The attack happened on the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and barely a week after a man who also yelled 'Free Palestine' was charged with fatally shooting two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington. Six victims hospitalized The victims who were wounded range in age from 52 to 88, and the injuries spanned from serious to minor, officials said. Six of the injured were taken to hospitals, and four have since been released, said Miri Kornfeld, a Denver-based organizer connected to the group. She said the clothing of one of those who remains hospitalized caught on fire. Members of the volunteer group called Run For Their Lives were holding their weekly demonstration when the attack happened. Video from the scene captured by witness Alex Osante of San Diego shows people pouring water on a woman lying on the ground who Osante said had caught fire during the attack. Molotov cocktails found Osante said that after the suspect threw the two incendiary devices, apparently catching himself on fire as he threw the second, he took off his shirt and what appeared to be a bulletproof vest before police arrived. The man dropped to the ground and was arrested without any apparent resistance in the video Osante filmed. The Molotov cocktails were made up of glass wine carafe bottles or jars with clear liquid and red rags hanging out of the them, the FBI said. 'He stated that he had been planning the attack for a year and was waiting until after his daughter graduated to conduct the attack,' the affidavit says. He had gas in a backpack sprayer but told investigators he didn't spray it on anyone but himself 'because he had planned on dying.' Soliman also told investigators he took a concealed carry class and tried to buy a gun but was denied because he is not a legal U.S. citizen. Suspect hospitalized after attack Authorities said they believe Soliman acted alone. He was also injured and taken to a hospital. Authorities did not elaborate on the nature of his injuries, but a booking photo showed him with a large bandage over one ear. Soliman, who was born in Egypt, moved three years ago to Colorado Springs, where he lived with his wife and five kids, according to state court documents. He previously spent 17 years living in Kuwait. McLaughlin said Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a work authorization in March 2023 that had expired. DHS did not respond to requests for additional information. ___ Tucker reported from Washington.
