The French authorities confirmed the holding of the Champions League matches scheduled for this week, led by the match between Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona, on Tuesday, and the match between Lille and Galatasaray, on Wednesday, despite the unrest, violence and looting that the country witnessed over the weekend, with strict security measures being taken to secure the matches and the fans.
On Monday, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez ruled out the possibility of canceling the upcoming football matches, stressing that the holding of the Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona match, scheduled in Paris at nine in the evening, is not in doubt, and that the matter also applies to the rest of the European competition matches, including the match between Lille and Galatasaray. Nunez's statements came during a press conference held in Matignon, in the presence of Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, two days after the October 17 demonstrations, which witnessed violence and looting, according to the French newspaper L'Equipe.
In Lille, preparations are underway to face Galatasaray, which is classified as a high-risk match, amid extensive security reinforcements, in anticipation of any possible disturbances. The authorities announced special measures to regulate the attendance of Turkish fans, including restricting them to the stands designated for visitors, requiring tickets to be obtained through the Turkish club, in addition to prohibiting the wearing of shirts, scarves, and symbols that indicate support for the team outside the area designated for its fans. The measures will also include people who do not hold tickets.
Lille Club decided to increase the number of private security personnel at Pierre Maurois Stadium to more than 800 people, compared to about 450 to 700 individuals usually in French League matches, depending on the nature of the confrontation. The police will also enhance their deployment within the city and around the stadium, to ensure control of crowd movement and deal with any violations.
These measures come after the Lille store, located on one of the main streets leading to the city center, was looted and vandalized during Saturday's unrest. Shirts, computers, and the contents of the accounting box were stolen, while some of the stolen shirts appeared for sale on the “Vinted” platform, still carrying anti-theft protection devices.
Although the incident is not related to Galatasaray's visit, its timing prompted the authorities to be more cautious before the European confrontation. Lille recalls his previous experience against Fenerbahce, Turkey, in August 2024, when the match was also classified as high-risk, but it ended without significant problems. This confrontation was held in the city of Valenciennes, far from the Lille stadium, due to France hosting the Olympic Games, amid a security deployment that included anti-crime units, mounted police, and teams trained to deal with police dogs.
The authorities are betting that the start of the match between Lille and Galatasaray at 18:45 will help organize the flow of fans and reduce the possibility of unrest, while the club management confirms its confidence in the ability of the competent authorities to secure the match.
Thus, France is committed to establishing its European program on time, while tightening security measures in Paris and Lille, at a time when the security forces are facing additional pressure against the backdrop of the violence and looting that the country has witnessed during the past days.
American Anne Lee began her career in the women's singles competition at the Japan Tennis Championships, by defeating Australian Emerson Jones.
Li, the first seed in the tournament currently being held in the Japanese city of Osaka, defeated Jones with a score of 5-7, 6-0, 6-3, today, Tuesday, in the first round of the competition, as this is the American player’s first appearance after her loss in the eighth round of the Wuhan Championship in China to Poland’s Iga Szwiatek.
Polish Magda Lynette also qualified for the second round, after her victory over American Claire Liu with a score of 6-4, 6-3, while Czech Teresa Valentova defeated Chinese Zhang Shuai with a score of 6-2, 1-6, 6-4, setting up a date in the next match with Austrian Lily Tajer.
American Marie Stojana joined the ranks of the finalists for the second round, thanks to her surprising victory over Ukrainian Oleksandra Oleinikova, the seventh seed in the competition, with a score of 6-2, 6-3.
In the next round, Stojana will play with Japanese Moyoka Ushijima, who defeated her compatriot Ena Shibahara with a score of 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 6-3 in a marathon match.
Croatian Antonia Rogic also reached the second round, after defeating Spanish Paula Badosa with a score of 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, and in the next match she will meet American Kayla Day.
Russian Diana Schneider qualified for the second round of the Ningbo Tennis Championship, currently being held in China, after defeating Kazakh Yulia Putintseva with a score of 7-5, 7-6 (7-4), today, Tuesday, in the first round of the competition.
Schneider's victory was not easy, as she was forced to come back after falling 3-5 down in the second set, and she also overcame 49 direct errors that she committed during the match, which lasted two hours and 26 minutes.
Schneider, ranked 13th in the world, set up a match in the 500-point tournament with Filipino Alex Ella, in a match that will determine which of them will qualify for the round of 8 in the competition.
Ella (21 years old) put an end to her series of modest results in a remarkable way, as she defeated Frenchwoman Diane Barry, ranked 32nd in the world, with a score of 6-1, 6-3 in her opening match of the tournament, yesterday evening, Monday.
Ella now aspires to maintain this momentum in her match in the round of 16 against Schneider, who, at the age of 22, won 4 titles in the Women’s Tennis Association tournaments, in addition to the silver medal in the women’s doubles competitions during the “Paris Olympics” in 2024.
This is the first confrontation of its kind in the career of both Ella and Schneider, who is seeded sixth in the tournament.
They were supposed to meet in the doubles competition at the French Open (Roland Garros), one of the four major (Grand Slam) competitions this year, where Ella was going to participate alongside Victoria Mboko, while Schneider was playing with Laila Fernandez, but the duo, Ella and Mboko, were forced to withdraw from the tournament.
Czech Sarah Bellic also defeated American Alicia Parks with a score of 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, to meet in the next round with Romanian Sorana Cristea, seeded eighth in the competition.
On the other hand, the Russian Polina Kudermetova also reached the second round, after she defeated the Spanish Cristina Buxa with a score of 7 - 6 (7 - 5), 6 - 2, to face the Kazakh Yelena Rybakina, the first seed in the tournament, in a heavy-caliber confrontation.
