A Nantes supporter was fatally injured during an altercation ahead of the Ligue 1 football match between Nantes and Nice, Saturday evening in Nantes, in circumstances that are still unclear, announced the prosecution, which opened an investigation. “Shortly before 8:00 p.m., several VTC vehicles transporting Nice supporters were attacked by supporters of FC Nantes” while they were going to the Beaujoire stadium, indicated the public prosecutor of Nantes, Renaud Gaudeul. “During these events, in circumstances which remain to be determined, a 31-year-old man, a supporter of FC Nantes, collapsed” and “died on the spot”, “despite the rapid intervention of emergency services”, he added.
In a press release published overnight, FC Nantes expressed its “pain” and presented “its most sincere condolences” to the loved ones of the deceased supporter. Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra also spoke of “great pain”, and sent her “thoughts” to loved ones. The investigation “must now specify the exact circumstances of the facts,” she added, in a message published on X (formerly Twitter). Initial information on this tragedy reported a supporter “seriously injured”, as the Nantes club had lamented on its X account.
“Wound in the back”
“The very first forensic investigations show that the victim has a wound in the back, which could correspond to a bladed weapon”, elements which will be refined during an autopsy, added the Nantes prosecutor. The investigation into “voluntary homicide” was entrusted jointly to the territorial direction of the judicial police and the Loire-Atlantique Departmental Security. “Numerous witness hearings are underway and will continue into the night,” underlined Renaud Gaudeul.
According to a source close to the case, the supporter, a member of the Brigade Loire group, received a stab, probably from one of the VTC drivers attacked. According to the daily West France, the attacker went to a police station in the evening. “All light must be shed on this tragedy,” reacted the first deputy to the city of Nantes Bassem Asseh in a press release. “Violence has no place either inside or outside of sports venues.” The new coach of FC Nantes, Jocelyn Gourvennec, explained that he had not been warned of the tragedy before the start of the match, won (1-0) by his team.
Series of incidents
“I only learned after the match that the Brigade Loire had been affected this evening,” said the coach. “It was a bit of a special context, a bit of a special atmosphere,” he said after the match. “I can’t imagine how you can go to see a football match, sometimes with your family, and be between life and death. It’s inconceivable,” continued Jocelyn Gourvennec, before the announcement of the death. “The players talked about it a lot in the locker room, they were very touched,” according to him. The attack on the Nantes supporter comes in a context of tensions and incidents on the sidelines of Ligue 1 matches.
Last Sunday, two Brest supporters were slightly injured by shards of glass when their bus was targeted by projectiles after their club’s 3-1 victory in Montpellier. Before the match, the police had to use tear gas and batons to “restore order” when “around a hundred Montpellier supporters, partly hooded and armed with iron bars and batons, sought to fight when the Brest supporters arrive”, according to the Hérault prefecture.
At the end of October, the Olympique Lyonnais bus was stoned before the match against Marseille at the Stade Vélodrome, injuring Lyon coach Fabio Grosso and his assistant Raffaele Longo. At least one bus of Lyon supporters was also attacked, the projectiles causing minor injuries, and the match could not take place. It was rescheduled for Marseille this Wednesday, December 6.