More than 400 people were arrested across France — including over 280 in Paris — after violent clashes broke out between football supporters and police following Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League final victory over Arsenal on Saturday night. Seven police officers were injured in the unrest, and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez condemned the scenes as "absolutely unacceptable." PSG secured a back-to-back European title in a penalty shootout in Budapest, Hungary, becoming the first French club to win the Champions League after coming from a goal behind.
As tens of thousands of jubilant fans spilled onto the streets of the French capital, the celebrations quickly turned disorderly in several locations. Around 20,000 people converged on the Champs-Élysées, the city's famous central avenue, while disturbances were most intense near PSG's home ground, the Parc des Princes, where tens of thousands had watched the match on giant screens inside the stadium. Between 4,000 and 5,000 people gathered outside, and police reported that projectiles and fireworks were thrown at officers, who responded with tear gas. Around 150 individuals attempted to force their way through one of the stadium gates before being pushed back. Elsewhere in the city, a group stormed the périphérique — Paris's ring road — briefly halting traffic, while individuals in the 8th arrondissement attempted to attack a police station before being dispersed. A bakery and a restaurant near the stadium were damaged, and authorities seized 24 flares and roughly 100 fireworks. Unrest also spread to other French cities, including Grenoble, where shop windows were smashed.
Authorities had anticipated trouble and deployed an extraordinary security operation — 22,000 police and gendarmes nationwide, including 8,000 in Paris and its suburbs. Tram lines were suspended, several metro stations closed, and bus services disrupted in an effort to limit disorder. Shops along the Champs-Élysées had boarded up their windows ahead of the match, recalling scenes from the previous year's Champions League victory, when PSG's triumph was marred by riots that left two people dead, including a 17-year-old boy, and resulted in 563 arrests nationwide.
The violence drew swift political reaction. Marine Le Pen, the far-right politician and three-time presidential candidate, wrote on X: "Only in France does a football club's victory spark riots. Only in France does everyone feel compelled to lock themselves in their homes on the evening of a victory to avoid being confronted with violence." The government defended its preparations, with the interior minister pointing to what he called "a very robust, very solid system in place."
Despite the unrest, authorities pressed ahead with celebrations. On Sunday afternoon, PSG players were scheduled to parade at the Champ-de-Mars, the public greenspace beside the Eiffel Tower, with around 100,000 fans expected to attend, followed by a reception with President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace.