10/19/2026 10:14:00
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10/19 10:12 CDT PSG-Barcelona match in Champions League to go ahead amid shock
over France's violent unrest
PSG-Barcelona match in Champions League to go ahead amid shock over France's
violent unrest
By SAMUEL PETREQUIN
AP Sports Writer
PARIS (AP) --- The Champions League showpiece between Paris Saint-Germain and
Barcelona will go ahead as planned on Tuesday in Paris, the French interior
minister confirmed despite violent weekend protests.
Many French citizens have been left shocked by the images of violence that have
drawn worldwide attention and highlighted the country's tense social climate.
On Monday, French Prime Minister Sbastien Lecornu said he instructed prefects
to impose "very limited" and "localized" curfews in cities to prevent more
rioting and looting.
The violence targeted city halls, other public buildings and hundreds of
businesses across the country, leading to more than 2,000 arrests.
Tuesday's match between PSG and Barcelona at the Parc des Princes will require
a robust security deployment, with police forces already strained following
weeks of student protests.
In May, Paris police detained dozens of people after violence disrupted
celebrations of PSG's second Champions League title and a group tried to storm
a police station.
Speaking after an emergency meeting with top government officials, Interior
Minister Laurent Nuez said the possibility of calling off planned events was
discussed, including soccer matches.
"But this does not apply to tomorrow's match between PSG and FC Barcelona," he
said.
Nuez added that other matches planned in European competitions this week would
not be affected. He mentioned the match between Lille and Galatasaray scheduled
on Wednesday in the northern city, where looters also vandalized shops over the
weekend.
Asked whether the tensions in France could affect his team, PSG coach Luis
Enrique said it would not, and that he was not scared.
"I'm not the right person to speak about this topic," he added. "I'm here to
speak about football. For sure we don't like this violence but that is how it
is in society. So we just need to stay focused on the football match."
Nuez offered his resignation on Sunday but French President Emmanuel Macron
asked him to stay to respond to police needs in an emergency situation. Macron
instructed Nuez "to take all necessary steps to ensure full transparency about
the failures in planning and intelligence-gathering that led to the violence."
Lecornu said details of the areas to be placed under curfew will be provided
later.
Nuez acknowledged that authorities "lost control" in some major cities on
Saturday, when hundreds of businesses were looted.
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Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.
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See AP's full soccer coverage here
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