Israel and France fans clash during football match amid large police presence
High security at Stade de France helps contain tensions during Israel-France match
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Your support makes all the difference.Israeli and French fans engaged in a brief skirmish on Thursday night at Stade de France, where vigilant police presence helped contain the clash.
The Nations League match had been designated “high risk” by French authorities due to rising tensions, following recent antisemitic incidents and football hooliganism in the Netherlandsduring a match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv last week.
The incident began just ten minutes into the game that kicked off at 8.45pm, when a small group of fans clashed in the upper stands, triggering a rapid response from stadium security.
Riot police, positioned nearby as a precaution, were prepared to step in if needed. Before kick-off, scattered boos from the crowd met Israel’s national anthem, adding to the already charged atmosphere in Paris. However, the cause of the altercation remains unclear.
President Emmanuel Macron attended the match alongside key officials, including interior minister Bruno Retailleau and prime minister Michel Barnier, showing solidarity against antisemitism amid the heightened security.
“We will not give in to antisemitism anywhere, and violence, including in the French Republic, will never prevail, nor will intimidation,” Mr Macron stated in an interview with BFMTV, firmly condemning both antisemitism and the threats of violence surrounding the match.
Former presidents François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy also joined Mr Macron in the stands as the game between Israel and Francethat ended in a scoreless draw.
Fewer than 20,000 spectators attended the 80,000-capacity Stade de France, marking a record low turnout, despite the heightened security measures. The low turnout is believed to be likely a result of the warning issued by Israel’s National Security Council.
Despite low attendance, around 4,000 police officers patrolled the stadium area alongside 1,500 additional security personnel stationed at the city’s public transport sites. Meanwhile, some 100 Israel fans defied a warning from their government against travelling for sports events, reported Reuters.
Patrick Bensimon, co-founder of the NGO Diaspora Defense Forces, arranged for a secure transport of roughly 600 Israeli fans, who travelled under police escort. "Eighty per cent of those here initially hesitated to come," Mr Bensimon was quoted as saying by the Guardian, as he referred to safety concerns heightened by recent violent episodes in Amsterdam.
Outside the stadium, a few hundred pro-Palestinian protesters gathered around 2km away, near the Front Populaire Metro station in St-Denis, waving Palestinian flags, as well as a few Lebanese and Algerian ones, to protest against the match.
"We don’t play with genocide," one banner read, in reference to the Gaza war.
Riot police intervened as the group, which had begun marching toward the stadium, was redirected to prevent further unrest. Israel denies allegations of genocide in its more than year-long offensive against Hamas.
French MP Éric Coquerel from the left-wing France Unbowed party criticised the government’s stance. “We are living in a schizophrenic moment,” he commented. “On one hand, international institutions recognise the existence of a genocide in Gaza. On the other, we have a French government that reluctantly agrees to call for a ceasefire.”
Mr Coquerel further condemned Mr Macron’s attendance at the match, suggesting the presence of French leaders sent the wrong message amid rising tensions in Gaza.
“This match, which everyone knows is second rate, is attended by President Macron, the prime minister, Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande. How do you expect Benjamin Netanyahu to hear any message other than: ‘You can continue to raze Gaza’? France is looking the other way.’
“This is purely a scandal. Let’s imagine a France-Russia match. Would Emmanuel Macron have honoured this encounter with his presence? Obviously not. While in both cases there are two aggressor countries,” he said.
French police chief Laurent Nuñez said that his forces were cautious, having drawn from experiences in the Netherlands. “What we learned is that we need to be present in the public space, including far away from the stadium,” he stated.
Security at the Stade de France was tight, with ticket sales closing early on Thursday morning, and a no-bag policy strictly enforced. Only French and Israeli flags were allowed inside, and fans were subjected to thorough searches at checkpoints around the venue.
The recent unrest follows clashes on Wednesday outside a Paris fundraising event for the Israeli military, where Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich had planned to speak before cancelling his appearance. Reports of police deploying tear gas and clashing with protesters waving Palestinian flags added to the tension leading up to the match.
As scrutiny increases over rising antisemitic violence, a report by Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema highlighted a "toxic cocktail" of antisemitism, football hooliganism, and regional anger over the conflict in Gaza, suggesting a complex undercurrent to these recent confrontations.
Additional reporting by agencies
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