Real Madrid's players pose for photographers prior to a Champions League opening phase soccer match between Real Madrid and Marseille at Santiago Bernabeu stadium, in Madrid, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
September 16, 2025 - 12:54 PM
MADRID (AP) — Spanish police clashed with Marseille fans ahead of the Champions League match between the French club and Real Madrid on Tuesday.
The confrontation began as the fans waited to get into the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium before the game.
Police in riot gear and horse-riding officers used batons to disperse the French supporters as they apparently tried to move out of the spot allocated for them as they waited outside the Bernabeu gates. A few thousand French fans were expected for the match.
The situation was controlled quickly and the fans entered the stadium in time for the match.
Palestinian flags banned
Bernabeu security personnel did not allow fans to enter the stadium with Palestinian flags, enforcing a policy that was in place even before pro-Palestinian protests made headlines for disrupting the Spanish Vuelta cycling race this weekend. The flags were confiscated from fans who tried to enter with them.
The anti-Israel protests disrupted several stages of the three-week-long Vuelta.
Protesters, who demanded that team Israel Premier Tech be expelled from the Grand Tour event, threw barriers onto the road and clashed with police on Sunday to keep the final stage from being completed as originally planned.
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