Despite violence targeting Israeli supporters after a Football match in Amsterdam on Thursday evening, the France-Israel meeting was held at the Stade de France on Thursday November 14.
The essentials
- The France-Israel match was held at the Stade de France on Thursday, November 14, announced Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau on Friday 8. “France is not backing down because that would amount to abdicating in the face of threats of violence and in the face of anti-Semitism,” he declared on the X platform.
- According to BFMTV, 2,500 police officers and gendarmes will be mobilized during the meeting. According to RMC, bars and restaurants around the stadium will close in the afternoon.
- However, concerns have been growing since clashes broke out in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on the night of November 7 to 8, 2024. After a football match between Ajax Amsterdam and Maccabi Tel Aviv, violence targeted Israeli supporters according to images posted on social networks. Israeli President Isaac Herzog denounced an “anti-Semitic pogrom”. Five people were injured and hospitalized according to authorities.
- The attack on Israeli supporters in Amsterdam sparked numerous reactions denouncing anti-Semitic acts. UEFA, the European football body, announced the opening of a procedure to shed light on this violence.
Latest updates
12:14 – “Football is made for sharing, regardless of religion and skin color”
The France-Israel match may well not have as many spectators as usual, frightened by the violence which took place in Amsterdam. “This tense context can lead many spectators to feel fear,” confirmed Philippe Diallo, president of the French Football Federation, in the columns of West France. “This is not normal. I deplore it, because football is made for sharing, regardless of religion and skin color. And that is why we are putting this security system in place to dispel this feeling of fear (…) By Thursday, I hope that the stadium will be more full than that, but it is clear that, contrary to our habits, this match will not be played behind closed doors.”
10:57 – A match shunned by the supporters?
After the violence which targeted Israeli supporters in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, fears are growing about the – maintained – France-Israel match next week. If a security system is going to be put in place, could it ultimately only cover a few people? According to RMC, less than 20,000 tickets were sold for the match, out of the 80,000 available at the Stade de France. “I don’t want to be in a position where I’m going to have to think about what’s going to happen after the match, and not take advantage of this moment,” testified Nicolas, a football fan who ultimately decided not to go to the match, at the microphone of BFMTV.
10:25 – Reinforced security for the match
Bruno Retailleau asked the police prefect, Laurent Nunez, to take “the necessary security arrangements for this match to take place at the Stade de France” between France and Israel. According to BFMTV, 2,500 police officers and gendarmes will be mobilized next Thursday 14 for the occasion. Restaurants, bars and shops near the stadium will be closed from the afternoon, RMC also informs.
10:04 – Continuation of the France-Israel match at the Stade de France
In a post on And this despite the violence which took place after the match in Amsterdam. “France is not backing down because that would amount to abdicating in the face of threats of violence and anti-Semitism,” he said.
What to remember
Violent clashes broke out between Israeli supporters and Dutch people on the sidelines of the Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel-Aviv, in Amsterdam, on the night of November 7 to 8, 2024. According to images of the violence, these were anti-Semitic attacks targeting Israeli and Jewish supporters. A thesis taken up by Israeli leaders who denounce a “pogrom” and a “premeditated anti-Semitic attack” in the respective words of President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to RMC, the violence against Israeli supporters was rapid. Shortly after 11 p.m. and the end of the match, the exit from the stadium went smoothly. The Israeli supporters left the enclosure after the other supporters, as required by security protocol for visiting supporters. After midnight, in the space of half an hour, the police informed of an intervention by anti-riot forces in several places in the city.
“A large number of vehicles from the mobile unit are present and reinforcements have also been called. Young people are also said to have provoked the police,” said local media AT5 to describe the scene and the response of the police. Amsterdam police protected and escorted Israeli supporters to their hotels after the clashes, according to AT5 footage. According to the same media, 62 arrests took place before and after the match. Most of those arrested are described as pro-Palestinian activists.
These violent events come as the war in the Middle East, in which Israel is fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon, continues. Previous meetings of Israeli teams in football competitions have caused much concern. The Dutch authorities, however, assure that they have been “particularly vigilant” in view of the match. The gathering of Israeli supporters before the match was protected by a large device and another bringing together pro-Palestinian activists opposing the club’s arrival was moved away from the stadium where the match took place as a security measure.
Israel’s reaction
The head of the government of Israel indicated in a statement “that he viewed with seriousness the premeditated anti-Semitic attack against Israeli citizens and called for increased security for the Jewish community in the Netherlands”, in particular with the taking of ” vigorous and rapid measures against the rioters. In response to the clashes, Benjamin Netanyahu sent planes to the Netherlands to “bring back” Israeli nationals, including the injured. The government also indicated that “Foreign Minister Gideon Saar will soon leave for an urgent diplomatic visit to the Netherlands.”
The Israeli army also reacted to the violence that occurred in Amsterdam, describing acts “targeted against Jews and Israelis”, “horrible and barbaric”, through one of its spokespersons, Nadav Shoshani. The Israeli authorities announced the sending of planes to repatriate nationals, including injured ones, who wish to leave the city
