France is warning football fans to behave and conduct themselves responsibly ahead of a major Thursday World Cup quarter-final match which pits France against African champions Morocco. Security services are on high alert, the government has said. The match kicks off at 4:00 PM ET.
"I appeal to everyone’s sense of responsibility. It has to remain a celebration," Sports Minister Marina Ferrari told the France Info broadcaster, after in previous years various high profile matches have sparked unrest and riots. France's Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has warned that "no misconduct would be tolerated."
As it turns out, there are multiple members of Morocco's national team that were born in France and/or play for French clubs - most notably Spanish-born team captain Achraf Hakimi, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain.
It remains that Moroccans are the second biggest non-European ethnic group in France (after Algerians). There has been a long history of tensions and conflict between French citizens and largely non-assimilated Moroccan communities spanning a period of years.
It must also be remembered that during France's 20th century colonialism, Morocco was French protectorate from 1912 to 1956.
Some online pundits are predicting riots and violence, regardless of the outcome, and that the situation is primed for it:
It’s bad news for several European cities that Morocco won [prior advancement in the cup]. Brussels, Paris, Montpelier, Lyon, and even some Dutch cities.
If France go through as they are expected to later tonight, it’s bad news for French police.
When France beat Morocco in WC 2022, 10,000 police had to be deployed across France. 5,000 in Paris alone.
Get ready for riots and violence.
The French team boasts of being 2018 World Cup champions and the 2022 runners-up. France beat the Moroccan team 2-0 in the semi-finals in 2022, ending up to that point was dubbed a 'fairy tail' advancement, hence 'revenge' is on the table.
To review of the underdog's performance so far in the tournament, Morocco has "enjoyed a successful tournament run ahead of this heavyweight clash, having drawn 1-1 with Brazil in a match they dominated statistically in the group stages, followed by expected wins over Scotland (1-0) and Haiti (4-2), and possess what many say is one of the most frightening attacking sides of the tournament."
Predictions for the aftermath have tended to go something like this...
The memes have been in hyperdrive...
Of the security situation, during an already extraordinarily hot summer, Euronews reviews further, "Authorities in Paris and other major cities are preparing for unrest, deploying several thousand police officers in preparation for intense clashes similar to those that erupted after the 2022 World Cup semifinal between the North African nation and its former colonial ruler."
"More than 250 people, many of them in the capital, were arrested for violent clashes with civilians and police officers after France’s victory," the report adds. "Authorities have advised the public to exercise caution and football fans to remain peaceful and respectful of the law." Some news sources say that 20,000+ additional French police are being deployed tonight just on fears of soccer unrest, with at least 8,000 extra in Paris alone.