Saturday, July 18, 2026

Hundreds arrested in France after PSG Champions League title win

About 20,000 football fans gathered on Paris’ Champs-Élysées Avenue after PSG’s win.

• May 31, 2026
PSG fans on the streets of Paris
PSG fans on the streets of Paris

French police arrested more than 400 people following clashes that erupted on Saturday after French Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain defeated Arsenal to win the UEFA Champions League.

A total of 416 arrests were made across France, including 283 in the capital, Paris, according to the French interior ministry.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez noted that seven of about 22,000 officers deployed for the final were injured in the “absolutely unacceptable” incident. 

Supporters set off fireworks to celebrate following PSG’s 4-3 penalty shootout victory, while transport services were also disrupted.

Police said the unrest left six vehicles, two businesses, and a bus shelter damaged, while dozens of flares and about 100 fireworks were seized.

About 20,000 football fans gathered on Paris’ Champs-Élysées Avenue after PSG’s win.

Earlier, the police clashed with supporters who gathered at PSG’s Parc des Princes to watch the match, during which fireworks were thrown at the officers, who fired teargas to disperse the crowd.

“Only in France does a football club’s victory spark riots,” far-right leader Marine Le Pen wrote on X. “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.” 

A similar incident occurred last year after the celebration of the French side’s win turned violent and resulted in the death of a 17-year-old boy and another.

PSG are the second club to win the competition back-to-back in the Champions League era.

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