Violence broke out in Paris last night after the city’s biggest football club lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League final.
Tear gas and baton charges were used against Paris Saint Germain supporters last night as police tried to quell the trouble.
Crowds grew ‘before the final whistle,’ one fan said near the Parc de Princes, the PSG home ground, they added that tear gas canisters were targeted at fans who retaliated with red flares and fireworks.
They said: ‘Riot police were out in force, and they came under attack when PSG went one-nil down.’
Videos posted from the night show angry fans attacking a white police vans near the Parc as smaller skirmishes continued in other parts of the city.
Fans armed with flairs descended on the Champs Élysées in droves.
Cars were left destroyed and toppled over or set on fire, as 3,000 police and gendarmes tried to keep order.
PSG star Neymar Jr tweeted: ‘Losing is part of the sport, we tried everything, we fought until the end. Thank you for the support & affection from each & every one of you. And congratulations to Bayern Munich.’
PSG have never won the cup and this was the team’s first time reaching the final since 1995.
As the French capital is still a coronavirus red zone, more than 200 people were cautioned by police for not wearing a face-covering, tweeted the Interior minister Gerald Darmanin.
He also tweeted: ’16 police officers injured, 12 stores attacked, about fifteen damaged vehicles. Thank you to the police for their interventions: 148 arrests including 108 guards at the disposal of justice.’
Meanwhile, in the south of France Marseille fans were also letting off fireworks, but in celebration at the PSG defeat.
The rivals and the once winners of the cup descended on to the streets to celebrate, chanting ‘where are all the Parisians now?’
In recent days, France has introduced stricter Covid-19 rules in Paris as cases spike across the country, leading it to be on Britain’s quarantine list, meaning that anyone coming back to the UK must self-isolate for 14 days.
But, despite this, fans still took to the streets to express their disappointment with a team they were sure was going to win.
