at the Parc des Princes, the ultras rebel and insult Anne Hidalgo, who “kills Paris and its magic” – Libération

2024-02-11 11:25:49

The Parisian ultras insulted the mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo and unfurled several banners against her during the PSG match against Lille on Saturday February 10 (3-1) at the Parc des princes, against a backdrop of conflict between the club and the town hall concerning the sale of the stadium. Homophobic chants were also sung.

“Without PSG, the Park no longer has princes”, “Hidalgo kills Paris and its magic” or even “recovered by politicians, a stadium for the people”. Saturday February 10 in the evening, the banners were out in the bays of the Auteuil bend of the Parc des Princes. If on the pitch Luis Enrique’s players defeated Lille 3 goals to 1, in the stands, the supporters of the capital club were also playing their match against the Paris town hall. Against a backdrop of conflict between the club and the city over the sale of the stadium, the Parisian ultras paid for Anne Hidalgo, the target of several banners. And shouting, repeatedly singing “Hidalgo resignation”, all mixed with insults. Enough to force the stadium announcer to speak after having already spoken for the first time before the match because of homophobic chants.

Because since Thursday February 8, the future of PSG no longer seems to be played out behind the enclosure wedged against the ring road and designed by architect Roger Taillibert. On the sidelines of the UEFA executive committee which was held in the capital, the president of PSG seems to have noted the refusal of the Paris town hall to sell him the Parc des princes. Enough, according to Nasser al-Khelaïfi, to motivate PSG to leave the stadium. “It’s too easy to say now that the stadium is no longer for sale. We know what we want, we wasted years trying to buy the Park. It’s over now, we want to move out of the Park,” thundered Al-Khelaïfi.

For months, the situation has continued to become tense in the face of the persistent blockage of the file. Committed until the end of 2043 in a thirty-year long lease with the town hall, owner, the Parisian club considers the acquisition of the stadium essential to carry out its expansion project to 60,000 seats, compared to around 48,000 currently.

The door of Paris town hall is “still open” to PSG, for which “there are other solutions” than sale, Anne Hidalgo’s deputy for sport, Pierre Rabadan, immediately reiterated. As for the option of “building a stadium, in Montigny-le-Bretonneux or elsewhere, it is ten years in the best case,” underlined the former rugby player.

Valérie Pécresse to the rescue

Faced with the impasse, the LR president of the Ile-de-France region, Valérie Pécresse, seems to want to emerge as the rescuer of the situation. The latter wants to help PSG “find a new stadium” after the club’s “breakup” with Paris town hall, her entourage announced on Friday. Anne Hidalgo’s political opponent wants to “seize the Public Land Establishment of Ile-de-France”, which manages land in the region, as its name indicates, in order to “launch research corresponding to the specifications charges of PSG,” she says at the Parisian.

This support from the region must be provided under “two conditions”, nevertheless underlines Pécresse: that local elected officials approve the approach and that the site is accessible by public transport. “We cannot leave PSG in an impasse,” she emphasizes, adding that she wants to “open up all the possibilities for a stadium.” “PSG has always been a Parisian and Yvelines club,” recalls the elected official from Yvelines. Before specifying: “But we will also look in Hauts-de-Seine, Val-d’Oise, Essonne…” Valérie Pécresse insisted on her wish to find a “sustainable installation”, recalls those around her. According to the same source, the president of the capital club, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, requested a meeting with the region. This proposal “comes into play from the moment a break was made with the city”, insists Valérie Pécresse’s entourage.

It is since January 2023 that the fate of the Park seems to have been sealed. Anne Hidalgo then closed the door, announcing that the stadium “does not [serait] not sold”. At the start of the week, the councilor recalled in Ouest-France that the Parc des princes was considered “as a heritage of Parisians”. Opposition to any sale reinforced Tuesday February 6: the Paris Council requested that the modernization of the enclosure “be carried out as part of an assembly […] not implying its transfer”.