As soon as the final whistle blew, unrest began. On the Champs-Élysées, a small group of young individuals targeted a bus shelter, hurling stones and debris. A police detail moved in to disperse the crowd, but tensions escalated rapidly. Near the Parc des Princes, officers faced volleys of homemade fireworks, forcing them to deploy tear gas. The first arrests were made within minutes. Later, a fleet of shared bicycles was set ablaze, fueling the confrontation. The Champs-Élysées became a battleground, with clashes intensifying between law enforcement and crowds of protesters.

Traffic on the Périphérique was brought to a standstill as motorcycles zigzagged through gridlocked lanes, some moving against the flow of traffic while pedestrians wandered freely among the stalled vehicles. A 24-year-old motorcyclist died after colliding with a concrete barrier erected to block the road. By early Sunday morning, a 17-year-old was stabbed multiple times and remains in critical condition.

57 law enforcement officers injured

On Sunday morning, France’s Interior Minister confirmed that 57 police officers and gendarmes had been injured nationwide. “We witnessed a sharp rise in projectile attacks and homemade firework discharges, particularly targeting security forces during interventions,” stated the minister. In footage from the 8th arrondissement of Paris, an individual is seen unleashing a barrage of fireworks in rapid succession.

Unrest spread to over a dozen cities, including Grenoble, where looting and vandalism were reported. By dawn on Sunday, authorities had made 780 arrests across the country, with 457 individuals still in custody.