4 days ago
PSG fans raise the roof as triumphant players hold aloft Champions League trophy
Paris Saint-Germain players walked into a wall of noise at their home stadium on Sunday, June 1, and brandished aloft the Champions League trophy that their fans have waited so long to savor.
Coach Luis Enrique, the architect of PSG's astonishing 5-0 destruction of Inter Milan in Munich on Saturday night, received a huge ovation at Parc des Princes, as did the influential Ousmane Dembélé and his teammates when they came onto the field one by one. Their faces were shown on a giant screen and, when Dembélé's face was displayed, fans inside the 49,000-capacity stadium broke out into chants of "Dembélé, Ballon d'Or" in the hope he wins the most coveted individual award in world soccer.
But the loudest cheer of the night was for long-serving captain Marquinhos, who walked with club president Nasser Al-Khelaïfi alongside him and with the Champions League trophy between them. Al-Khelaïfi and Dembélé were both tossed into the air by PSG's players, who then did a lap of honor after the greatest success in the club's 55-year history.
Open-top bus parade
PSG had earlier Sunday put on an open-top bus parade in the French capital for its fans.
The winners of European club soccer's biggest prize arrived in Paris on Sunday afternoon and headed to France's most famous avenue, the Champs-Élysées, which overnight Saturday saw acts of violence and clashes with riot police. Thousands of police were deployed Sunday to keep order with similar tactics to those used on Saturday night, Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told reporters.
PSG fans waved blue and red as they waited for the team bus to arrive at shortly after 5 pm. When the parade started, the atmosphere was calm as fans stood behind barriers with riot police in front of them. Fans roared when Marquinhos brandished the trophy over his head, then passed it down to other players on the bus. Enrique joined in with the fans as they sang one of the club's anthems, and Dembélé blew kisses. The team later met with French President Emmanuel Macron and first lady Brigitte Macron at the Élysée Palace, with players wearing club tracksuits and PSG jerseys.
After leaving the palace, the players arrived at the Parc des Princes, for a concert, light show and presentation of the trophy. Fans sang "Champions d'Europe" ("Champions of Europe") as they waited for the ceremony.
PSG denounces 'isolated acts' of violence
The exuberance on display in most places was overshadowed by the deaths of two people and some 200 injuries during Saturday night's celebrations. A total of 294 arrests had been made overnight and two cars were set alight close to Parc des Princes, which had shown the game live. 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.
PSG denounced the violence. "These isolated acts are contrary to the club's values, and don't at all represent the immense majority of our fans," PSG said in a statement.
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 the final, the national police service said. The regional prosecutor said the killing was not apparently linked to the match. In Paris, a man in his 20s was killed in Paris when his scooter was hit by a car during PSG celebrations.
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A police officer was hit accidentally by fireworks at a PSG gathering in Northwest France and placed in an artificial coma because of grave eye injuries. A total of 201 people were injured around the capital, four of them seriously, the Paris police said. Tear gas was used near the stadium and water cannons used near the Arc de Triomphe to disperse rowdy crowds.
But at the Place de la Bastille, joyous fans climbed onto the base of the famous column, singing, dancing and letting off flares, while those around them joined in. 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.
