Riots immediately erupted in the French capital following Paris Saint-Germain’s victory over London’s Arsenal Football Club in the Champions League Final on Saturday.
PSG won a historic second-straight European crown, defeating Arsenal by 4-3 on penalty kicks in the final in Budapest on Saturday. However, Les Parisians’ repeat victory appears set to trigger a repeat of last year’s unrest, which broke out after their win over Milan.
Police were seen attempting to pre-emptively disperse growing crowds at the Champs-Élysées and the Porte de Saint-Cloud, sparking initial skirmishes. Multiple fires were also set throughout the city, including near the Eiffel Tower.
A car is set ablaze as PSG supporters celebrate their team’s win in the UEFA Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Arsenal FC played in Budapest, at Place du Trocadero opposite the Eiffel Tower in Paris on May 30, 2026. (Photo by LOU BENOIST / AFP via Getty Images)
At the time of this reporting, 45 people have been arrested, 89 fines have been issued, and hundreds of mortar explosive devices have been seized. At least one police officer has been injured, and a bakery and restaurant were vandalised in the 16th arrondissement, Le Figaro reports.
In preparation for another potential outburst of public disorder, French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez ordered 22,000 police officers and gendarmes to be ready for an operation on Saturday evening, including 8,000 in Paris, which is also hosting the Roland-Garros tennis tournament and three major concerts at the same time.
“This event could lead to large festive gatherings and may be marked by public order disturbances,” Nuñez said on Wednesday, noting the “significant episode of urban violence” following last year’s Champions League Finals.
“If there are any disturbances, interventions will be made—let there be no doubt about that,” the Interior Minister vowed.
PSG supporters run from the teargas fired by French police during the UEFA Champions League final football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Arsenal FC , in Paris on May 30, 2026. (Photo by LOU BENOIST / AFP via Getty Images)
The violence in 2025, which saw nearly 500 arrests in Paris, two people killed, over 190 injured, and hundreds of fires set across the country, was widely linked to France’s increasingly multicultural landscape, including Rassemblement National (RN) leader Jordan Bardella, who lamented that Paris had become a “playground for thugs” and that the image of France was being “tarnished in the world”.
Then-Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau condemned the “barbarians” who engaged in “savagery” following the PSG victory over Milan.
Commenting on the outbreak of violence on Saturday, former French Presidential Candidate Marine Le Pen remarked, “Only in France does the victory of a football club spark riots. Only in France does everyone feel compelled to lock themselves in their homes on a night of victory to avoid being confronted with violence.
“The French can no longer stand these scenes of chaos that multiply at the slightest pretext, and this, despite an extraordinary security apparatus.”