PSG v Lyon French Ligue 1 game postponed due to Paris protests
A French police vehicle is stationed outside the Parc des Princes stadium, in Paris on April 9, 2024, on the eve of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona. The headline match of Ligue 1's 8th round between Paris SG and Lyon, originally scheduled for October 25, 2026, has been moved to October 26, 2026, at the request of the police prefecture, the Professional Football League (LFP) announced on October 23. This marks the fourth match rescheduling this weekend, across both Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, necessitated by the large-scale demonstrations planned in France, following similar protests that took place on October 17.
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"The LFP takes note of the police decree prohibiting the staging of the game between Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique Lyonnais on Sunday at 8:45 pm (1945 GMT)... and has decided to reschedule the match for Monday at 8:30 pm," the French league said in a statement.
Paris police are deploying resources elsewhere as French authorities brace for another weekend of protests in the capital and across the country after some of the worst urban violence in years erupted on the sidelines of demonstrations a week ago.
The trouble broke out on the fringe of nationwide protests over the rising cost of living. Since then, authorities have ordered partial curfews in parts of Paris and other cities to prevent further violence.
France's Interior Minister, Laurent Nunez, announced Friday that some 70,000 security personnel will be deployed around the country this weekend as he warned that calls for violence and looting were circulating on social media.
Several Paris museums, including the Louvre, have said they will be closed on Saturday, while Art Basel Paris, the biggest annual art fair in the French capital, will shut this weekend, two days early, due to the risk of protests.
The date change for PSG causes a potential headache as the match will now clash with the Ballon d'Or ceremony taking place in London on Monday evening.
Ten PSG players are among the 30 nominees for the most prestigious individual award in football, including last year's winner Ousmane Dembele.
A year ago PSG also had to play a match on the same night as the Ballon d'Or ceremony, after their game in Marseille was postponed by 24 hours due to storms.
While the PSG fixture is affected, the NFL game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints taking place on Sunday afternoon at 2:30 pm (1330 GMT) is set to go ahead as planned.
The first ever NFL match to be staged in France will be held at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis on the northern outskirts of Paris.
The postponement of the PSG game comes after a decision was taken earlier in the week to postpone another French top-flight football game, in the south-western city of Toulouse between the home team and Troyes, from Saturday to Sunday.
Games in France's second-tier Ligue 2 have also been moved this weekend on the request of police.
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