France-Israel football match: Scuffles seen at Stade de France despite sparse attendance

Inside a sparsely attended Stade de France on Thursday for a France-Israel football match, some French fans booed the Israeli national anthem and some minor scuffles happened. It came just days after violence seen in the Netherlands at a Europa League game.

In order to address any possible chaos, 4,000 French security personnel had been deployed in and around the stadium ahead of the Nations League game and on public transport. Stade de France noted a 16,611 attendance and the match ended 0-0.

Israel had alerted its people abroad against travelling for sports events. But some Israeli fans decided to defy the recommendations, sitting in a corner of the 80,000-capacity stadium. Some boos could be heard during the playing of the Israeli national anthem.

Racism and intolerance on the rise in France

Leading up to the France-Israel football match, numerous anti-Israel demonstrators had gathered at a square in Paris’ Saint-Denis district. Israel continues to deny allegations of genocide in its more than year-long military operations against Hamas in Gaza.

French President Emmanuel Macron also attended the game for solidarity. Hours before the kickoff, he told BFM TV that France is not going to give into anti-semitism. The match has been making global headlines for mixed reasons.

Racism and intolerance are on the rise in France, triggered in part by the Gaza crisis after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israeli cities last year. Similar trends have also be seen in different parts of Europe.