A burnt coach after clashes between OL and PSG fans at a motorway tollbooth, just before the Coupe de France final in Lille, on May 25, 2024 at the Fresnes-lès-Montauban tollbooth, in Pas -de-Calais (AFP / Pierre BEAUVILLAIN)
A coach was burned and 20 supporters, as well as eight police officers, were slightly injured during clashes between OL and PSG fans at a motorway tollbooth, just before the Coupe de France final in Lille, facts condemned “with the greatest firmness” by President Emmanuel Macron.
This brawl took place between supporters of the two teams who were going to the Pierre-Mauroy stadium in Villeneuve-d’Ascq around 6:00 p.m. on the A1 motorway, at the Fresnes-lès-Montauban tollbooth (Pas-de-Calais) , about sixty kilometers from Lille.
“Around a hundred individuals are involved”, according to the Pas-de-Calais prefecture. A bus was set on fire and “20 minor injuries” were reported among the supporters, all “taken care of on their arrival at the stadium by the SAMU”, she specifies.
“At least eight police officers” were also slightly injured, added the prefect of the North Bertrand Gaume before the match, won by Paris Saint-Germain (2-1).
“I condemn with the greatest firmness all violence,” reacted Head of State Emmanuel Macron, present at the stadium, during a public stroll in Tourcoing. “These are sporting events where you must above all be happy.”
– “We had to defend ourselves” –
According to the account of prefect Gaume, a convoy of supporters, escorted by the police, crossed paths with those of opposing supporters, “arrived at the wrong place” and “at bad timing”.
Supporters, of whom he did not clearly specify whether they were from Lyon or Paris, then “triggered the security of the bus” to “attack the opposing team”, which for its part sent smoke bombs against a coach.
“There were very violent brawls”, before the rapid intervention of the police, according to Mr. Gaume. In addition to the burned bus, four others were damaged.
According to the Collectif ultras Paris, a Parisian bus was “attacked by a Lyon bus”, while the road was “exclusively reserved for Parisian supporters, each group of supporters had a predefined route”.
“Subsequently, other Parisian and Lyon buses crossed paths, and we had to defend ourselves again,” he added in a press release.
A burnt coach after clashes between OL and PSG fans at a motorway tollbooth, just before the Coupe de France final in Lille, on May 25, 2024 at the Fresnes-lès-Montauban tollbooth, in Pas -de-Calais (AFP / Pierre BEAUVILLAIN)
“The route followed was that of the escort, modified by the police. The buses were indeed under escort,” assured Olympique Lyonnais in a press release condemning this violence.
The carcass of the burnt bus was still under the toll booth at the start of the match, AFP journalists noted. A few Lyon supporters still there at that time were finally taken into buses under escort.
At the exit of the stadium, the supporters of the two camps, first the Lyonnais, then the Parisians, were taken care of calmly, without crossing paths, under the vigilance of numerous stewards and long columns of CRS vehicles.
– “Inadmissible” –
“These acts of violence, which took place before the match on the public highway, are unacceptable” and “contrary to the values which must be upheld by football”, reacted the French Football Federation. “The final of this prestigious competition is a celebration and it must remain so.”
During the day, Parisian supporters, but especially Lyon supporters, brought the streets of central Lille to life in a good-natured atmosphere, noted an AFP journalist.
According to the Pas-de-Calais prefecture, 1,000 police officers and gendarmes were mobilized to secure the meeting and 1,000 others to manage security in the stadium.
CRS near OL supporters near the Fresnes-lès-Montauban toll booth, in Pas-de-Calais, after clashes with PSG supporters just before the Coupe de France final in Lille, May 25 2024 (AFP / Pierre BEAUVILLAIN)
The Northern prefecture put in place several measures before this very high-risk meeting, classified 5 on a scale of 5 by the National Division for the Fight against Hooliganism.
Supporters of OL and PSG are notably prohibited from moving “outside the spaces reserved for them” and cannot meet near the enclosure.
The prefecture also asked fans of each team to each use a different metro line to get to the stadium.