More than 400 arrested as PSG’s Champions League celebrations erupt into violence across France
Paris Saint-Germain’s second straight Champions League title was overshadowed by a night of rioting, looting, and attacks on police, with 416 arrests and seven officers injured nationwide.
Paris Saint-Germain’s dramatic penalty shoot-out win over Arsenal in Budapest on 30 May 2026 trigged widespread street celebrations that quickly escalated into urban violence in the capital and at least fifteen other French cities. By the early hours of Sunday, interior minister Laurent Nuñez had announced 416 arrests, 283 of them in the greater Paris area, and seven police officers wounded, one seriously in Agen. The prefecture seized 24 torches and around a hundred mortar fireworks.
A night of chaos on the Champs-Élysées and beyond
A crowd of about 20,000 packed the Champs-Élysées to follow the final, with another 48,000 inside the Parc des Princes watching on giant screens. After the final whistle, tens of thousands more flooded the avenue. Within hours, projectiles were launched at police near the Champs-Élysées, fireworks were fired continuously, and a group attacked a police station in the 8th arrondissement. At the Porte de Saint-Cloud, six vehicles and two shops were damaged, and some 150 people tried to force their way into the stadium. Disturbances spread to Rennes, Strasbourg, Clermont-Ferrand, Grenoble, and other cities, with reports of looting.
Police response and sharp rise in arrests
The first official tally, released around 23:00, counted 71 detentions. That figure jumped to 326 (235 in Paris) by 23:30, and finally to 416 at the minister’s 01:30 press conference. The Paris police prefecture deployed tear gas against crowds near the Parc des Princes and used rapid interventions to prevent protesters from blocking the city’s ring road.
- First police report: 71 arrests in Paris
- Update from interior ministry: 326 arrests nationwide, 235 in Paris
- Press conference by Laurent Nuñez: 416 arrests, 283 in Paris agglomeration, 7 officers injured
Minister condemns ‘unacceptable’ excesses
The interior minister added that the violent turn was “absolutely unacceptable.” Authorities had mobilised 22,000 police and gendarmes nationwide, 8,000 of them in the Paris region, reflecting the lessons of last year’s deadly riots after PSG’s first Champions League title, when two people died and nearly 200 were injured.There were festive demonstrations that were marred by a certain number of excesses, which corresponds to the situation we had foreseen and therefore anticipated.
Official celebrations proceed amid tension
Despite the overnight unrest, the programme of celebratory events went ahead on Sunday. Nearly 100,000 fans were expected at the Champ de Mars near the Eiffel Tower, with a reception at the Élysée Palace highlighting the club’s achievement as the only French team to win the European Cup in consecutive seasons. For many supporters, the joy of the sporting triumph was inseparable from the anger and damage that followed.
