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France-Kazakhstan: why the match is played at the Parc des Princes and not at the Stade de France?

2021-11-10T05:07:58.304Z


For the first time since October 2013, the French football team will return to its former home at the Parc des Princes during the time of u


Since the exit of the Stade de France in 1998, the France team has returned to its former home in the Parc des Princes only three times.

This Saturday, it will be four.

For Kazakhstan's reception in the playoffs of the 2022 World Cup, its last outing of the year at home, the Blues will exceptionally be unfaithful to Saint-Denis to tread the always impeccably maintained lawn of the Porte d'Auteuil.

The Blues have recently played matches in other stadiums in France for various reasons - the two September fixtures, for example, were played in Strasbourg and Lyon, while the Euro preparation match against the Wales took place in Nice. But this time, it is constraints linked to the Stade de France that force the Blues to play in the 16th arrondissement.

In question, the work of the RER B planned this weekend, which would have complicated leaving the stadium.

Work planned late by the SNCF, which took advantage of this potentially extended weekend (with the November 11 bridge) to catch up on night work that could not be done.

A planning that therefore only concerns this Blues match, scheduled between two rugby posters (France-Argentina last Saturday and France-New Zealand, November 20).

This work has caused two concerns: saturation in terms of transport, but also a concern in terms of security, while the meeting will be played this Saturday, November 13 on the sixth anniversary of the attacks in Paris, which also targeted the Blues match against to Germany.

In the Park rather than in a half-full Stade de France

To allow spectators to return to Paris after the match, it was first considered to limit the capacity for this match to 40,000 or 45,000 people in Saint-Denis, which the FFF would have refused. "At 40,000 spectators, it was unplayable economically, in addition to the significant risk posed by leaving the stadium when people left," said the president of the FFF, Noël Le Graët.

In this situation, the decision to transfer the match to the Parc des Princes, with its 48,000 seats, was more interesting at all levels than to play in a Stade de France that is only half full.

"I called Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, who said yes right away," says Le Graët.

In addition, the organization of the Stade de France should receive compensation for the cancellation of this event, which was to be one of the last of the year in the house of the Blues.

The challenge is to avoid this kind of hassle in the future, and in particular from next February and March, with the posters of the Six Nations Tournament against Italy (February 6), Ireland (February 12) and England (March 19).

Even if, just in case, there will always be room for sport at the Parc des Princes.

Source: leparis

All sports articles on 2021-11-10

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