4 days ago
Watch: Riot police clash with fans in Paris during Champions League final
French riot police deployed tear gas and baton-charged supporters in Paris after trouble broke out during the Champions League final.
Thousands of supporters gathered to watch Paris St-Germain face Inter Milan in Munich, both on a beam-back at the Parc des Princes and around the city.
🔴Nombreuses tensions sur les #ChampsElysées. Intervention des forces de l'ordre en cours. #PSGINT #UCLfinal #Paris
— Charles Baudry (@CharlesBaudry) May 31, 2025
There had been trouble in Munich earlier in the day but there appeared to be more serious scenes in Paris, with flares thrown and police involved in confrontations both outside the stadium and on the Champs Elysees.
That was a continuation of what had taken place in Munich, with police engaging with Inter fans at the Universität subway station at around 5.20pm local time, with the city's U-bahn struggling to cope with the number of fans attempting to reach the stadium. Frustration built among both sets of supporters about how difficult it was to board a train, and police officers in riot helmets were witnessed chasing Italian fans up escalators. Some of those fans returned, with some aiming improvised weapons at the police. They responded with pepper spray.
A statement from the German police said: 'physical altercations occurred at the Universität subway station, including the use of pepper spray. An investigation into the circumstances is ongoing.'
German newspaper Bild reported that Inter fans also threw stones at the Fröttmaning U-Bahn station, the stop closest to the stadium. Another social media videos showed a skirmish between fans of both teams on board a train, with supporters wearing PSG and Inter shirts respectively aiming kicks at one another.
The showpiece match of Uefa's flagship competition has been beset with crowd issues in recent years, including Liverpool fans being sprayed with tear gas outside Paris's Stade de France before the 2022 final against Real Madrid. Some Manchester City fans were also forced to walk for hours to reach and return from a stadium 12 miles outside of Istanbul due to transport issues in the previous year's final.
Munich has not hosted the final since 2012, when Chelsea beat Bayern Munich on penalties after a 1-1 draw. This is the first Champions League final to take place in Germany since 2015's 3-1 victory for Barcelona over Juventus in Berlin. The European Championships which took place in Germany last summer was largely free of crowd trouble, although the country's creaking rail infrastructure was a source of frustration for thousands of fans, before becoming a flashpoint again on Saturday night.
