The French Interior Ministry announced that 416 people were detained across the country, including 283 in Paris, after PSG’s win over Arsenal.
Published May 31, 2026
French police have detained more than 280 people in Paris after thousands of people poured into the streets and violent clashes broke out after Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League final.
Some 22,000 police were deployed across France for Saturday’s match, including 8,000 in Paris, after PSG’s championship victory last year was marred by violence. To minimize disruption, Paris’ trams were suspended, some metro stations were closed, and bus traffic was halted in places.
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According to France’s Interior Ministry, 416 people were detained across the country, including 283 arrested in Paris. It was not immediately clear how many of these individuals were detained pending further investigation.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said seven police officers were injured and called the violence “absolutely unacceptable.”
Six vehicles and two stores were damaged.
A group of supporters also stormed Boulevard Périphérique, Paris’s ring road, stopping traffic and firing flares.
Around 20,000 people gathered on the Champs-Elysées in Paris as fans celebrated a dramatic penalty shootout victory in the Hungarian capital Budapest, police said.
Stores boarded up their windows before the match to avoid a repeat of last year’s riots in which young people vandalized shopping streets such as the Champs-Elysées. Hundreds of people were arrested.
Twenty smoke bombs and about 100 fireworks were seized when a bus stop near the Champs-Elysées was vandalized on Saturday.
The match took place on a busy night in Paris, with singer Aya Nakamura performing at the Stade de France and rapper Damso performing at La Défense Arena, and the French Open tennis tournament in full swing.
Police said a bakery and restaurant were damaged near PSG’s Parc des Princes stadium, where tens of thousands of people had gathered to watch the match. Another 4,000 to 5,000 people roamed outside, throwing projectiles at police.
A police spokeswoman said around 150 people “attempted to enter through one of the gates” at the stadium, but police turned them away.
Some people tried to set up barricades with rented bicycles, but police removed them.
Clashes broke out between police and supporters near the stadium, and police responded with tear gas as fireworks were thrown.
“Only in France”
The scene infuriated France’s far right. “France is the only place where a soccer club’s victory sparks riots,” three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen wrote in X.
“Only in France, on the night of victory, does everyone feel the need to lock themselves in their homes to avoid facing violence,” she added.
Nuñez said there were “very strong and robust systems in place” to curb violence.
A police spokesperson said: “Our responsibility is to ensure a peaceful and completely safe celebration for everyone.”
PSG players will take part in a parade on Sunday afternoon in front of an expected crowd of 100,000 people on the Champ de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower, before being received by President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysée Palace.
