Representatives of the French Football Federation (FFF) and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) were invited, Friday, November 8 morning, to the Ministry of Sports to review the conditions under which a tifo in favor of Palestine could be deployed two days earlier at the Parc des Princes, before the Champions League match against Atlético de Madrid.
The director of institutional and international relations of the FFF, Erwan Le Prévost, and the general director of PSG, with Victoriano Melero, were received by the minister, Gil Avérous, and the secretary of state responsible for citizenship and struggle against discrimination (attached to the Ministry of the Interior) Othman Nasrou. At the end of this meeting, PSG promised upstream control of the tifos “to ensure the absence of messages of a political nature”Agence France-Presse learned.
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In Othman Nasrou's entourage, it is estimated that UEFA, the European organizing body of the Champions League, “underreacted” by announcing on Thursday that it would not initiate any proceedings against the capital club. UEFA bans any messages in stadiums “of a political, ideological, religious nature” if it is deemed offensive and can resort to sanctions under article 16.4 of its disciplinary regulations. But the immense canvas proclaiming « Free Palestine » (Free Palestine), above a banner pleading for “war on the ground but peace in the world”exhibited in the Auteuil stand, “cannot be considered provocative or insulting in this specific case”she estimated.
On social networks, members of the Collectif Ultras Paris (CUP) – the largest group of PSG supporters – at the origin of the tifo, assured that“in no case” the one “was not intended to convey a message of hatred, quite the contrary”.
PSG promises to “strengthen the banner control process”
Before UEFA's decision, Thursday, the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, had strongly criticized the tifo in question, believing that it “had no place in this stadium”. “I ask PSG to explain themselves and the clubs to ensure that politics does not damage sport, which must always remain a catalyst for unity”wrote the tenant of Place Beauvau on his X account. Then added, shortly after, on Sud Radio: “I want to know more, to know how this tarpaulin arrived, how it could have been deployed… I had the police chief tell me what had happened (…). I demand accountability. Solemnly. » Gil Avérous had also, on X, denounced “unacceptable deviations”. “Sports fields should not become political platforms”he added.
Paris Saint-Germain was not aware of the content of the message contained in this tifo, specifies a source within the club, who wishes to emphasize “that the Parc des Princes is – and must remain – a place of communion around a common passion for football”. “When PSG says that it was not aware, we have the right to wonder if they are making fun of us or if their security system is totally faulty”people around Mr. Nasrou argued on Friday morning, before the meeting with the club.
A participant in Friday's meeting explained to AFP that access to the Parc des Princes outside match days would be prohibited to the CUP for an undefined period. According to another source close to the Parisian club, PSG also promised to “strengthen the banner control process and [d’]prohibit those which have not been validated”. Paris Saint-Germain expected to announce in the near future “a number of other sanctions”.
Additional tension
“If the club’s response is insufficient, it will be open to interpretation (…). If there are no sanctions, the Ministry of the Interior will not be satisfied with them”further assured Othman Nasrou, according to a participant, emphasizing that Beauvau would be “attentive to the proper application of sanctions”.
This affair creates additional tension, a few days before the meeting between the French football team and the selection of Israel, on November 14, at the Stade de France, in the international context of multiple clashes in the Middle East. The organization of this match is particularly complex in terms of security.
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Belgium had given up hosting the Israeli team in September; the meeting had been relocated to Hungary. In October, Italy opted for Udine and a small enclosure, with the establishment of a « zone rouge » forty-eight hours before kick-off and a reduced number of spectators, for their duel. Thursday evening, violent clashes broke out in Amsterdam, on the sidelines of a Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel-Aviv.
