2 deaths, 559 arrests mar French celebrations after PSG’s Champions League win
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Police arrest a man as clashes erupt following celebrations by PSG fans on the Champs-Elysees.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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PARIS – Two people died and hundreds were arrested in France overnight as football fans celebrated Paris St-Germain’s (PSG) Champions League final victory, the Interior Ministry said on June 1.
The epicentre of the euphoria
The ministry said 491 people were arrested in the capital when crowds converged on the Champs-Elysees avenue and clashes broke out with officers.
Across France as a whole, including Paris, a total of 559 people were arrested.
The two deaths occurred as the celebrations took place.
A man riding a motor scooter in Paris died after he was hit by a car a couple of kilometres away from the Champs-Elysees.
In south-western town Dax, a 17-year-old boy was fatally stabbed at a gathering celebrating the victory, prosecutors said.
His death occurred shortly after the match and “during the celebrations”, but the prosecutor’s office said it did not know whether it was related to the football game. It added that the perpetrator was “on the run”.
The Interior Ministry said 18 police officers in Paris were injured, along with three elsewhere in France, as were 192 people celebrating in the streets. Seven fire-service personnel were hurt.
It added that 692 fires were reported through the night, including 264 cars that were set ablaze.
The PSG team were to hold a victory parade on the Champs-Elysees on June 1, with tens of thousands of supporters expected to gather to catch a glimpse of their returning heroes.
Overnight, though, journalists saw police on the Champs-Elysees using a water cannon to stop a crowd reaching the Arc de Triomphe that sits at the top of the famed thoroughfare.
“Troublemakers on the Champs-Elysees were looking to create incidents and repeatedly came into contact with police by throwing large fireworks and other objects,” police said.
Elsewhere, police added that a car careered into fans celebrating PSG’s win in Grenoble in south-eastern France, leaving four people injured, two of them seriously. All of those hurt were from the same family, police said.
The driver handed himself in to the police and was placed under arrest. A source close to the investigation said it was believed he had not acted intentionally.
The public prosecutor’s office said the driver tested negative for alcohol and drugs.
‘Day of glory’
The majority of fans celebrated peacefully, but police in Paris said scuffles broke out near the Champs-Elysees avenue, and around PSG’s Parc des Princes stadium, where 48,000 watched the 5-0 win on giant screens.
Most of those arrested in the capital were suspected of illegally possessing fireworks and causing disorder.
The PSG victory meant the club won the biggest prize in European club football for the first time in their history.
One 20-year-old supporter, Clement, said: “It’s so good and so deserved. We have a song that talks about our struggles and it hasn’t always been easy.
“But we got our faith back this year with a team without stars. They’re 11 guys who play for each other.”
French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said he would host the players on June 1 to congratulate them. In a message on X, he hailed a “day of glory for PSG”.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo described it as a “historic” win.
A total of 11.5 million people tuned in across France to watch the match, according to the Mediametrie audience-measurement company and one of the broadcasters, Canal+. AFP
