A simple street apart and 44 short meters! “Traveling” to the Parc des Princes lawn to face Paris Saint-Germain this Sunday, January 4 (8:45 p.m.), Paris FC will only move a few steps away from the den it has occupied since the end of the summer: the Jean-Bouin stadium.
By accessing Ligue 1 and leaving Stade Charléty in the 13th arrondissement, the capital’s second club has geographically moved very close to the reigning French champion. Since the start of the season, the two clubs have taken turns playing in the 16th arrondissement, one playing at home while the other travels to a more distant opponent. So they never cross paths. But they will meet again this Sunday evening on the same lawn, a first between two Parisian teams since February 1990 and a meeting between Racing Paris and PSG.
48,000 spectators, including a large majority of Rouge et Bleu supporters, will take part in the party and attend the now closest derby in Europe. Because if a few teams share the same stadium and the same pitch – Inter Milan and AC Milan at San Siro, Lazio and Roma in the Italian capital or the two Bruges teams in the Belgian championship – the two Parisian venues are the closest, which makes it a “very special derby” noted Luis Enrique at a press conference. “I’m happy to play a derby in Paris,” he said. It’s beautiful for the city. »
In Manchester, 6 kilometers between Old Trafford and the Etihad
Elsewhere in Europe, many metropolises have two very high-level clubs which usually compete against each other. Their stadiums are sometimes only a few hundred meters apart as the crow flies, but none do “better” than the Parisian clubs. Thus, Benfica and Sporting in Lisbon are only separated by 2.21 km, Liverpool and its legendary Anfield is almost as close to the new stadium that Everton now occupies (2.8 km), the Emirates of Arsenal players and the Tottenham field are 6.29 km apart in North London when the path between Old Trafford and the Etihad Stadium, respectively home ground of Manchester United and Manchester City, is 6.43 km long.
Spain is also holding its two derbies, with a little more than 5 km difference between the Camp Nou and the RCDE Stadium, the two stadiums of the Barcelona clubs and 7.73 km between Santagio Bernabeu, the venue where Kylian Mbappé and his Real Madrid teammates play, and the Riyadh Air Metropolitano of Atlético de Madrid.
In a few months, on the occasion of the 34th day of the championship, it will be time for the European Champions to visit their neighbors. For the last match of his first season in the elite, the promoted Parisian will in turn host Paris Saint-Germain. A first, this time, for Jean-Bouin!
