Football: Darmanin and Oudéa-Castéra want to limit travel bans on supporters

They say that to govern is to plan. In a letter addressed to the Prefects, which RMC obtained, Gérald Darmanin, the Minister of the Interior and Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, in charge of Sports, present the course of action to follow for the coming months. Due to the Paris Games, “where the security of several million foreign nationals will rely on State services”, Prefects are asked to limit prefectural orders banning the travel of supporters.

In this letter of October 13, the two ministers believe that it is rather preferable to supervise groups of supporters rather than prohibiting them from accessing the stadium. “Faced with the frequent appeals of supporters’ associations and clubs, administrative police measures must be particularly justified, on the basis of a history of disturbances to public order, antagonisms between supporters, an impossibility of mobilizing supporters. forces in sufficient numbers to secure the meeting and, more generally, the analysis of the DNLH (Editor’s note National Division for the Fight against Hooliganism). The mere sporting issue of the meeting is not enough to demonstrate a risk of disturbing public order.”

The need to anticipate

Orders prohibiting movement or perimeters have greatly decreased since last season. A trend which must continue according to ministers. Another request, in the event of prefectural orders, the Prefects must issue them as soon as possible and not the day before as was often the case. “Sometimes late publication of prefectural decrees hampers the effective preparation of meetings and security measures. These decisions must be made as soon as possible.”

The last point mentioned relates to the supervision of the use of pyrotechnic devices. “We are counting on your full mobilization so that football matches remain festive moments and take place safely all year round,” conclude Darmanin and Oudéa-Castéra.