NFL-Paris game played in festive atmosphere after fresh demonstrations

Oct 25, 2026; Paris, FRA; Pittsburgh Steelers fans show their pride at Stade de France Stadium during a game against the New Orleans Saints. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

PARIS, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The Pittsburgh ⁠Steelers defeated the New Orleans Saints 16-10 in the first NFL regular-season game in Parison Sunday, in a ⁠calm and festive atmosphere, a day after fresh demonstrations drew more than 100,000 people into the French ‌capital.

The nationwide protests largely overshadowed the build-up to the game, with some fan and NFL events cancelled over the weekend, mainly due to their location in central Paris.

On Sunday, as Saturday’s rain gave way to sunshine, the mood was peaceful beforekickoff around the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, some ​10km (6 miles) north of Paris centre and more than 13km (8 miles) fromPorte d'Italie, ⁠where Saturday's protests began in southern Paris.

James Brown, ⁠a 51-year-old Saints fan who travelled to Paris especially for the game, told Reuters the atmosphere around the stadium ⁠was "wonderful, ‌really good".

The police presence appeared neither heavy nor unusual at the Stade de France, which hosted rugby sevens and athletics during the 2024 Paris Olympics and regularly serves as the home ground for the French national rugby and ⁠soccer teams.

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators marched in France on Saturday, with ​largely peaceful rallies giving way to ‌clashes in Paris and Marseille as night fell despite a huge security operation aimed at preventing a repeat ⁠of last week's unrest.

The ​main demonstration took place on the southeastern fringes of Paris, where at least 110,000 people turned out to denounce rising living costs and growing inequality.

"We didn't notice much yesterday," 38-year-old Steelers fan Lukas Baldridge told Reuters. "We came in, went to a bar, got some drinks, ⁠got dinner, went home, didn't see any protesting.

"Streets were closed. Most ​shops were closed. That felt unusual maybe but I don't know enough about Paris to know what is normal and what's not normal."

The party was in full swing in a packed stadium when the game kicked off at 2.30 p.m. (1330 GMT), after French ⁠stars Antoine Dupont and Teddy Riner were introduced to the crowd.

A couple of hours earlier, some Steelers players had arrived at the Stade de France dressed like characters from Peaky Blinders.

Steelers fans seemed to outnumber their opponents, even though the neutral-site game was officially hosted by the Saints.

"It kind of felt 50/50," Saints linebacker Kaden Elliss told a press conference. "This is ​such a fun atmosphere. Maybe not feel like the true home team, it was ⁠a very special atmosphere, one I wish we could have gotten a win in."

Nigerian rapper Burna Boy and French singer Yseult ​performed during a brief halftime show.

"I would like to start by saying how ‌much we appreciate everyone who, in the country of France, ​Paris, Versailles, helped make this event happen," Saints coach Kellen Moore told a press conference.

"I thought it was a really great event, really great game today."

(Reporting by Vincent Daheron; editing by Clare Fallon and Christian Radnedge)

Thank you for your report!

2026年10月25日；法国巴黎；匹兹堡钢人队球迷在法兰西体育场观看钢人队对阵新奥尔良圣徒队的比赛时，展现出他们的自豪之情。图片来源：Kirby Lee-Imagn Images（必须注明出处）

巴黎，10 月 25 日（路透社）——周日，在巴黎举行的首场 NFL 常规赛中，匹兹堡钢人队以 16-10 击败了新奥尔良圣徒队。比赛气氛平静而喜庆，此前一天，新的示威活动吸引了超过 10 万人涌入法国首都。

全国范围内的抗议活动很大程度上掩盖了比赛前的准备工作，一些球迷活动和 NFL 活动在周末被取消，主要是因为这些活动举办地位于巴黎市中心。

周日，周六的雨停了，阳光普照。在圣丹尼斯法兰西体育场开球前，气氛平静祥和。圣丹尼斯位于巴黎市中心以北约 10 公里（6 英里）处，距离周六在巴黎南部爆发抗议活动的意大利门超过 13 公里（8 英里）。

51岁的圣徒队球迷詹姆斯·布朗特地前往巴黎观看比赛，他告诉路透社，体育场周围的气氛“非常棒，真的很好”。

在法兰西体育场，警力部署看起来既不密集也不反常。该体育场在 2024 年巴黎奥运会期间举办了七人制橄榄球和田径比赛，并且经常作为法国国家橄榄球队和足球队的主场。

周六，数十万示威者在法国游行，尽管当局采取了大规模的安全行动以防止上周骚乱重演，但随着夜幕降临，巴黎和马赛的示威活动大多以和平方式进行，最终演变为冲突。

主要示威活动发生在巴黎东南郊区，至少有 11 万人走上街头，谴责不断上涨的生活成本和日益加剧的不平等现象。

“昨天我们没注意到什么，”38岁的钢人队球迷卢卡斯·鲍德里奇告诉路透社。“我们进来，去了酒吧，喝了点东西，吃了晚饭，然后回家了，没看到任何抗议活动。”

“街道都封闭了。大多数商店都关门了。这感觉可能有点不寻常，但我对巴黎了解不够，不知道什么是正常的，什么是不正常的。”

下午 2 点 30 分（格林尼治标准时间 13:30），比赛正式开始，挤满人的体育场内气氛热烈，法国球星安托万·杜邦和泰迪·里内尔向观众致意后，庆祝活动正式拉开帷幕。

几个小时前，一些匹兹堡钢人队的球员穿着打扮像电视剧《浴血黑帮》中的角色一样抵达了法兰西体育场。

尽管这场中立场地比赛的官方主办方是圣徒队，但钢人队的球迷人数似乎比他们的对手还要多。

“感觉胜负五五开，”圣徒队线卫凯登·埃利斯在新闻发布会上说道。“这里的气氛太棒了。虽然感觉不像真正的主场作战，但气氛非常特别，真希望我们能赢下这场比赛。”

尼日利亚说唱歌手 Burna Boy 和法国歌手 Yseult 在短暂的中场表演中献唱。

“首先，我要感谢所有在法国、巴黎、凡尔赛等地帮助促成此次活动的人们，”圣徒队教练凯伦·摩尔在新闻发布会上说道。

“我觉得今天的比赛非常精彩，赛事也非常精彩。”

（Vincent Daheron报道；Clare Fallon和Christian Radnedge编辑）

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