Berri's victory against Nîmes, Friday evening January 24, 2025, was tarnished by serious incidents in the stands. At this time, the course of events is still uncertain but, in the middle of the second half, a crowd movement occurred in the visitors' park. According to corroborating testimonies, several individuals entered to fight with the fifteen Nîmes supporters who came to encourage their team in Châteauroux. Witnesses speak of iron bars which could have been used as weapons. These scuffles required the intervention of law enforcement and firefighters to treat the injured.
At the end of the match, won by Berri (3-2), the visitors' coach let his anger burst forth. “Incidents take precedence over defeat, thundered Adil Hermach, the coach of Nîmes Olympique. It's inconceivable what happened. » According to Nîmes journalists present this Friday evening in Châteauroux, the attack could have been carried out by supporters of Montpellier, who came to seize the tarpaulin of their historic rivals. “It’s not the first time”they insisted.
“They entered like a mill”
“I was told about a real attack, it’s hard to talk about football after that, continued Adil Hermach. I have three people from my family who came and who could have been there. I don't care about the result. » He also questioned the security conditions: “It’s incredible that there isn’t more security in a football stadium. We can speak of a real descent. Even in the world of Ultras, these are things that cannot be done. Apparently, there were fifty to ten. They entered like a mill. It's a nightmare. »
Four people were reportedly injured.
© (Photo NR, Thierry Roulliaud)
In the evening, the Châteauroux club published a press release and deplored “the incidents that occurred this evening during the match against Nîmes Olympique”. “Despite the security service put in place, around thirty individuals from outside the meeting and the town of Châteauroux, hooded and equipped with iron bars, broke into the Nîmes supporters’ parking lot”specifies the text. The balance sheet of “this act of violence left four injured who were treated by emergency services on site”.
A complaint filed by Berri
“Shocked by these actions, the La Berrichonne de Châteauroux club strongly condemns this violence and provides its support to the victims as well as to Nîmes Olympique. » The club announces that it “will file a complaint with the public prosecutor and ask that all light be shed on these intolerable facts. This unacceptable and shameful behavior has no place in football and in sport. »
