Tonight is the big night. This Sunday from 8 p.m., Morocco and Senegal face each other in Rabat in the final of the 2025 African Cup of Nations. This match with immense stakes will inevitably be closely followed in France and the Paris region.
Thus, and while a decree from the police headquarters has prohibited any gathering on the Champs-Élysées since the start of the competition, a major security system will be put in place this Sunday evening in Paris. The police headquarters anticipates excesses, particularly in the event of a Moroccan victory.
The system focuses on two strategic areas: the Champs-Élysées (8th arrondissement) and the square in front of the Arab World Institute (IMA) in the 5th arrondissement, where the match will be broadcast. From 7 p.m., several law enforcement units will take position.
On the most famous avenue in the world, two Motorized Brigades for the Repression of Violent Action (Brav-M) will be deployed, accompanied by eight CRS sections distributed between the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe. Their mission: to carry out dynamic rounds, detect any suspicious gatherings and intervene if necessary.
The prefecture is not skimping on resources: a drone will fly over the area prohibited to supporters, while teams from the Paris Urban Video Protection Management Service (SGVIP) and the Territorial Intelligence Sub-Directorate will be responsible for detecting and observing crowds.
On the traffic side, a complex filtering system will be implemented from 7 p.m. Objective: prevent any supporter vehicle from accessing the Champs-Élysées and Place Charles-de-Gaulle. Several roadblocks will be installed at the Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées, avenue Georges V, or avenue de la Grande Armée.
“A tradition” of celebrating
The La Bellevilloise establishment in the 20th arrondissement, which will also broadcast the match in front of some 1,500 people, is also subject to specific surveillance.
In recent days, several voices have been raised, questioning the ban on all gatherings on the Champs-Élysées. “We are taking a slope which is not, in my opinion, the right one,” Frédéric Hocquard, deputy for tourism and nightlife at the City of Paris, said in our columns.
“It’s a tradition to party on the Champs after a match. Especially since 45 players participating in the CAN were born in Île-de-France, the largest contingent in the world,” he testified, worrying that “under the pretext that there could be excesses or provocations, a gathering should be preventively banned.”
On the night of Wednesday to Thursday, after Morocco qualified for the final, thousands of Moroccans defied, often without knowing it, the prefectural decree and found themselves on the most famous avenue in the world. The police used tear gas and batons, but no major excesses were reported.
