Paris will deploy 5,400 police officers for Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan, police chief Laurent Nunez said on Friday in an interview with French broadcaster Cnews.
Although the Champions League final will be held in Munich, a PSG victory would be expected to spark celebrations in the club’s home city which could escalate into disturbances.
In light of the incident in Liverpool earlier this week in which a car ploughed into football fans, Nunez said traffic around the Arc de Triomphe – one of the city’s best-known landmarks – will be blocked from midday Saturday, with the Champs-Élysées boulevard and nearby streets also closed that evening.
PSG’s win over Arsenal earlier this month, which secured their place in the final, sparked a night of unrest in Paris, with 47 people arrested and three others injured after being hit by a car.
“From 6 p.m. (1600 GMT) this Saturday, there will be no more traffic on the Champs-Élysées and in the perpendicular streets,” Nunez said.
“Individuals who come solely to commit vandalism and loot businesses, that’s a pattern we’re obviously working to systematically put an end to. That will also be the case on Saturday evening,” he added.
“We will obviously be extremely firm. As soon as there is damage, attacks on law enforcement, there will be interventions.”
