When Paris Saint-Germain travel to the Stade Gaston Gérard on Friday to play Dijon FCO, they will do so without road support from the Collectif Ultras Paris. Earlier in the week, the PSG ultras sent out a communication, stating as to why they wouldn’t travel. Along with not traveling, the Ultras are planning to stay away from the Parc des Princes entirely. The reason for this action is due to incidents between the ultras and police at the stadium.
Communiqué. pic.twitter.com/8G3Bf0L2af
— Collectif Ultras Paris (@Co_Ultras_Paris) October 30, 2019
To explain the situation, let’s go back to 2010, the year in which the Ultras couldn’t attend any matches. Le Parisien timelines the events that led to PSG’s attempt to combat hooliganism due to the death of a supporter. Former club president Robin Leproux introduced the Plan Leproux. The main focus of the plan was to eliminate the Ultra’s presence at the Parc.
For those six years, the stadium had no atmosphere. Missing were the tifos and the chants; it was a soulless environment. The seats were made up of white-collar business people, tourists, and families. There’s nothing wrong with having those types of fans, but it’s the Ultras that create a positive atmosphere for the players.
However, in 2016, PSG began a dialogue with them. Le Parisien wrote about the movement behind letting the Ultras back into the Parc. It was then they began letting in a couple hundred into the stadium. Slowly the numbers kept multiplying, and now they fill one end of the stadium. The past three years, it seemed as though fences were mending. Nonetheless, after the match against Olympique de Marseille, it looks as though both sides are back to square one.
From the communication that the Ultras sent out, it looks as though the police at the stadium are looking to create an environment where they can provoke the Ultras. Furthermore, they believe the motive for this is all political. As a result, they will not be attending any of the matches in the foreseeable future. It doesn’t matter whether it’s the men, women, or handball squad until there are changes.
If anyone wants to learn more about the situation on why the Ultras were not allowed into the stadium, Copa90 did a feature video on them. It goes further into detail and provides background into the tensions between the Ultras, PSG, and the French government.
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