The violence surrounding PSG’s Champions League victory on May 30 led to more than 780 arrests across France, including 480 in Paris.
Of these 780 arrests, 457 resulted in police custody.
On the law enforcement side, 57 police officers and gendarmes were injured.
Outside the capital, the Ministry of the Interior reported 71 municipalities where celebrations escalated into disorder.
Authorities had deployed 22,000 police officers and gendarmes, including 8,000 in the capital.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, 47,812 police officers were deployed around professional football during the 2023–2024 season, representing a 6% increase year-on-year. The number of hours devoted to maintaining public order around football has increased by 86% over six years.
While violence linked to sporting events continues to occur in France — last year, PSG’s first Champions League victory had already led to the arrest of 592 rioters — Europe has experienced far more serious episodes.
In the United Kingdom, between 1946 and 1960, around 13 hooliganism incidents were recorded each season in England; this figure rose to approximately 25 incidents per year between 1961 and 1968 before exploding in the following decades.
The 1980s were marked by major disasters. In 1985, the Heysel Stadium disaster, during the final between Liverpool and Juventus in Brussels, resulted in 39 deaths and around 600 injuries following clashes between supporters and the collapse of a wall.
Four years later, the Hillsborough disaster caused the deaths of 97 Liverpool supporters during a crowd crush in an overcrowded stadium.
In response to this crisis, the United Kingdom gradually implemented one of the most repressive systems in the world. From the 1980s onward, British authorities carried out around 6,000 arrests per year.
In 2010, more than 3,000 Football Banning Orders were active. 2,439 were still in force on June 1, 2025.
This model did not prevent disorder during the Euro 2020 final at Wembley in July 2021. Approximately 2,000 ticketless supporters managed to enter the stadium. The disturbances led to 86 arrests and left 19 police officers injured. An independent inquiry later concluded that fatalities had narrowly been avoided.
Major international tournaments also continue to generate tensions. During Euro 2024 in Germany, which attracted nearly 6 million visitors, police recorded 2,340 offences, 700 incidents of physical violence and carried out 1,112 arrests.
A few days later, the Copa América final between Argentina and Colombia in Miami was delayed by 82 minutes after mass incursions by ticketless supporters. Authorities carried out 27 arrests and 55 expulsions from the stadium.
In Indonesia, the Kanjuruhan Stadium disaster caused 135 deaths and around 580 injuries in 2022. In Egypt, the Port Said Stadium riots resulted in 74 deaths and more than 500 injuries in 2012.
In total, the major football-related disasters and violent incidents recorded since the 1960s have caused more than 1,000 deaths worldwide.
Sources:
– PSG Victory: 780 Arrests | La Nouvelle République
– Heysel Stadium Disaster | Britannica
– The Hillsborough Disaster | IOPC
– Football Policing and Banning Orders, England | GOV.UK
– Euro 2020 Final Disorder | BBC Sport
– Violence at Football Matches | French Ministry of the Interior
– 27 Arrests, 55 Ejections | FOX Sports
– Indonesian Football Disaster | AP News
– Port Said Stadium Riot – Wikipedia
– Football Hooliganism in the UK – Wikipedia
