a bus on fire and around thirty injured

Violent clashes took place between supporters of Olympique Lyonnais (OL) and those of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) on Saturday May 25. A bus was set on fire under the toll barrier at Fresnes-lès-Montauban (Pas-de-Calais), and four others were damaged. These scenes of chaos on the A1 motorway could have been avoided. In a press release published in the morning, OL accused the authorities of a clear error of direction. The supporters of the two teams, on their way to Lille (North), should never have crossed paths.

The authorities had defined two separate routes, although the match was classified as high risk. The prefect of the North, Bertrand Gaume, assured on Saturday that the Parisians were indeed on the route which had been assigned to them. An outburst of violence ensued. Around a hundred supporters of both teams clashed. Around thirty supporters and eight police officers were injured. A judicial investigation was opened to determine responsibility for the violence.