PARIS: Thousands of Paris Saint-Germain supporters took to the streets of the French capital on Saturday to celebrate their club’s victory in the Champions League final, but nearly 300 arrests were made after some clashes with police.
The majority of fans celebrated peacefully, but Paris police said scuffles broke out near the city’s Champs-Elysees avenue and PSG’s Parc des Princes stadium, where 48,000 had watched the 5-0 win against Inter Milan in Munich on big screens.
Most of the nearly 300 people detained were suspected of possessing fireworks and causing disorder, Paris police said. AFP journalists saw police use a water cannon to stop a crowd reaching the Arc de Triomphe.
“Troublemakers on the Champs-Elysees were looking to create incidents and repeatedly came into contact with police by throwing large fireworks and other objects,” police said in a statement.
Outside Paris, police said a car careered into fans celebrating PSG’s win in Grenoble in southeastern France, leaving four people injured, two of them seriously.
All of those hurt were from the same family, police said. The driver handed himself in to the police and was placed under arrest.
A source close to the investigation said it was believed the driver had not acted intentionally.
In Paris, most fans showed their joy by singing and dancing in the streets, with cars sounding their horns, after their team won the biggest prize in European club football for the first time in their history.
One 20-year-old PSG supporter, Clement, said: “It’s so good and so deserved! We have a song that talks about our struggles and it hasn’t always been easy.
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“But we got our faith back this year with a team without stars. They’re 11 guys who play for each other.”
French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said he would host the victorious players on Sunday to congratulate them.
In a separate message on X, Macron hailed a “day of glory for PSG”.
“Bravo, we are all proud,” he wrote. “Paris is the capital of Europe tonight.”
Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo hailed it as a “historic” win.
The PSG team will hold a victory parade on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday when tens of thousands of supporters are expected to gather to get a glimpse of their returning heroes.
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