A meeting under very high tension. The France-Israel Football match counting for the League of Nations, Thursday November 14, at the Stade de France, will benefit from an imposing security system, due to a tense context. The banner of support for Palestine deployed at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday, during the Champions League match between PSG and Atlético de Madrid, and recent events during the meeting between Ajax Amsterdam and Maccabi Tel-Aviv , in the Netherlands, where violent chants against the Arab community and violence against Israeli supporters have been noted, prompting the French authorities to be cautious and anticipate possible excesses. Franceinfo summarizes what we know about the arrangements for this match which takes place against the backdrop of the war led by Israel in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.
More than 4,000 police and gendarmes mobilized
The arrangement for this meeting will be “extremely reinforced” et “very unusual”promised, Sunday, the Paris police prefect, Laurent Nuñez, on BFTMTV. “We will have a total of 4,000 people on the system”he declared. In detail, 2,500 police officers and gendarmes will be around the stadium and 1,500 in the streets of the capital and transport. “You have to be present in the center of Paris” car “There can be incidents everywhere”he warned.
In comparison, during the 2022 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool which was marred by incidents which delayed the start of the match, nearly 6,800 members of the police were mobilized, recalls The World. “There will also be 1,600 security agents hired by the FFF, where on average it is 1,200 or 1,300 for France matches in a sold-out stadium”added Laurent Nuñez.
These figures are therefore well above normal since, according to Driss Aït Youssef, doctor of public law, specialist in security issues, an international match usually mobilizes between “1 500 et 2 000” members of the police. “It actually depends on the configuration of the match and the nature of the expected supporters. Indeed, we are on a system which is an important system”explained the expert on franceinfo.
Only 20,000 spectators expected
This security system is all the more important as the 80,000 seats at the Stade de France will not all be occupied, since only 20,000 people are expected on Thursday, according to the French Football Federation (FFF), which specified that the ticket office was still open. The tickets were put on sale late due to the uncertainty of the meeting being held at the Stade de France behind closed doors or in public. This will be the lowest attendance for a Blues match in this venue. In comparison, the last match between the two teams, on September 4, 2004, during a qualifying match for the 2006 World Cup, attracted 43,527 spectators.
This low attendance is not the fault of the public authorities, who did not request a gauge, but forced the enclosure to close its entire third floor. The places closest to the pitch should also be sealed off to avoid intrusions by supporters onto the pitch. The parking lot for visiting supporters, which includes 3,000 spaces, will be open, but is not expected to be full as “less than 200 Israeli supporters from France and not Israel are expected”specifies West France.
“We announce a hundred Israeli supporters, but which are not in the same vein as the 'ultras' that we saw in the streets of Amsterdam”, advance to franceinfo Joseph Delage, pillar of the Irrésistibles Français. “Club supporters are not the same as those of nations”he elaborates. Further proof of the public's disinterest in this match, the group of official supporters of the Blues should have barely more than 200 members out of the 2,500 in total. “We have an order of 220 tickets, it’s ridiculous compared to other matches, usually our low range is between 1,000 and 1,200 people”assures Joseph Delage.
A double security perimeter
To supervise the arrival at the stadium of supporters, two security perimeters will be set up around the enclosure: a first curtain in front of which spectators will have to present their named place and their identity document, then a second, at immediate proximity to the stadium. For both passages, there will be “each time identity check, search, pat-down”promised Laurent Nuñez. These provisions are not necessarily new, according to Joseph Delage, who remembers such a double perimeter during the first match after the attacks of November 13, 2015 at the Stade de France, against Russia, in March 2016.
Concerning the tickets, which are therefore strictly nominative, “the deadline for changing beneficiaries and transferring tickets is set for the day of the match, 11/14 at 12 p.m. After 12 p.m., it will no longer be possible to change names or transfer”said the prefecture on Sunday. Scalded by the episode of the banner at the Parc des Princes, the authorities also banned Palestinian flags. Only French and Israeli flags will be accepted. “Backpacks will be prohibited, as will all containers with liquid such as bottles, water bottles…”added The Parisian. Finally, algorithmic video surveillance, tested during the Olympic Games, and which Michel Barnier wants to generalize, will also be used.
An Israeli delegation under close surveillance
Before the meeting, Israeli authorities on Sunday called on supporters to avoid going there. “The National Security Council recommends that Israelis abroad take precautions (…) particularly during the coming week, to completely avoid going to sporting events and cultural events attended by Israelis , especially at the next match of the Israel team in Paris”explained this organization which depends on the Prime Minister's office.
It is not yet known whether any supporters have planned the trip from the Middle East. Contacted, the Israeli embassy confirmed that a certain number would make the trip, without giving a precise figure, assures The Parisian. The security of the Israel team was entrusted to the Raid, specified Laurent Nuñez. “Israeli footballers and supporters are welcome in Paris”nevertheless recalled the Minister responsible for Europe, Benjamin Haddad, on CNews and Europe 1.
Emmanuel Macron and Michel Barnier present in the stands
The holding of this meeting is “a question of principle”said the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau. La France insoumise requested its cancellation due to the risks of“a very strong disorder”according to Mathilde Panot, the head of the group in the Assembly, or to protest against “Israeli government policy” and the war in Gaza, according to MP Louis Boyard.
Proof of the desire to show that this match is important from a political and diplomatic point of view, Emmanuel Macron will be present in the stands. The Head of State thus intends to send “a message of fraternity and solidarity after the intolerable anti-Semitic acts which followed the match in Amsterdam”Franceinfo learned from the president’s entourage. At his side will be the Prime Minister, Michel Barnier, but also the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, and the Paris police chief, Laurent Nuñez, franceinfo has learned.
