Paris Mayor Abandons Plans for Champions League Fan Zone
There will likely not be a massive fan zone in Paris for the Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal FC, scheduled for May 30 in Budapest.
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire confirmed on Monday that he was abandoning his initial plan to set up a free broadcast area in the capital.
“I have obviously heard the reservations of the police prefecture, I know that they are also those of the Interior Minister,” he told the press.
Unmanageable Concentration of Events
The socialist mayor explained this decision by the exceptional accumulation of events planned the same weekend in Paris and the nearby suburbs. In total, about 200,000 people could potentially be affected by these events. “Reason compels me to listen to them,” he acknowledged.
The mayor detailed a series of major events already scheduled on May 30:
- Aya Nakamura at the Stade de France
- Damso at Paris La Defense Arena
- Bouss at the Accor Arena
- Roland-Garros tournament
- A match of Stade Francais at the Jean-Bouin stadium
- An opening of the Parc des Princes to watch the PSG-Arsenal match
“For me, what matters most is the security of Parisians and spectators,” emphasized Emmanuel Gregoire.
Police Prefecture Opposed to Champions League Fan Zone Project
The Paris Police Prefecture had already shown opposition to the implementation of a fan zone in the capital.
A few days earlier, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez had also expressed reservations about this project, mentioning the need to coordinate the organization of such a security device in advance.
After incidents during previous PSG celebrations, authorities fear an overload of security forces in an extremely busy weekend.
