Furiani’s wounds still alive, 30 years after the tragedy

In the Furiani stadium in Bastia (Haute-Corse), the commemoration takes place around the round ball, Thursday, May 5. Children and former players come together for a friendly game. 30 years ago, the lives of many victims were turned into horror. Basile Boli was to play that night. “We do not forget. This commemoration is part of our lives, especially mine, because I experienced what should not be experienced”he confides.

On May 5, 1992, the Bastia club received OM. The city is in turmoil, a grandstand is built especially for the occasion. The Furiani stadium accommodates double its capacity, i.e. 18,000 spectators. The stands showed the first signs of weakness a few minutes before kick-off, but the atmosphere was euphoric. “And the stand collapses like a mille-feuille. It did not fall backwards, it crashed into itself”, remembers Jean-Pierre Paoli, announcer of the match. Hundreds of people fell several tens of meters and found themselves trapped in a pile of scrap metal. The collapse of the stand killed 19 people and injured more than 2,300. Furiani remains the worst disaster in French sport.