It was planned, and PSG kept their word. Qualified for the round of 16 of the Coupe de France after its big victory on Monday (7-0) over amateurs from the Pays de Cassel, Paris left its share of ticketing revenue to northern amateurs whose first team plays in Regional 1 (sixth division). A significant figure, for the moment still unknown, for this rural club in Flanders, born in 2018 from a merger, with an annual budget of 150,000 euros.
“Paris was very, very classy,” insists northern sports director Gabriel Bogaert. The US Pays de Cassel played Monday evening in a packed Bollaert stadium, ie 38,000 people. The amateur club just had to bear the costs of organizing the meeting, while RC Lens, the resident club, provided its employees and its electronic ticketing system.
In addition to this financial windfall, the Northerners will receive the financial allocation provided by the French Football Federation (FFF) as part of the Coupe de France. This begins from the seventh lap of the event and is cumulative. In the case of the Pays de Cassel, present at this stage of the competition for the first time in its history, the payment will amount to 102,500 euros.
Guests in the PSG locker room
But beyond the financial part, the fans also experienced an exceptional moment, despite the heavy and predictable defeat. At the break, Kylian Mbappé, author of the first quintuplet in the history of PSG in an official match, offered his jersey to Alexis Smijak, captain of the USPC but also a member of the Collectif Ultras Paris.
He and his partners were then invited to the PSG locker room after the match. They were able to get autographs from their opponents, and also other official outfits from the French champions. “It’s nice to get the PSG jerseys back, we usually go buy them in stores”, welcomes Cassellois Kévin Rudent.
