Tens of thousands of Algeria supporters across France celebrated the Desert Foxes’ victory against Senegal in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations on Friday evening, with major street parties taking place in Paris, Lyon, and Marseille.
Algeria won its second AFCON title on Friday evening in Cairo after beating Senegal 1-0 in the final with a deflected goal in the opening seconds by striker Baghdad Bounedjah.
In Paris, cars could be heard beeping as crowds waving Algerian flags headed towards the Champs-Élysées to celebrate Algeria’s win.
Around 2,500 police officers have been mobilised around the world-famous avenue and the Arc de Triomphe to prevent street clashes.
#TotalAFCON2019 "The atmosphere here, on the Champs-Elysées in #Paris, is electric after #Algeria's victory. The celebrations will be going long through the night."@Selina_Sykes in the #French capital for @France24_en ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/V7Dzoc7kRR
FRANCE 24 English (@France24_en) 19 juillet 2019
In Marseille, around 25,000 Algeria fans gathered peacefully near the Old Port. In Lyon, police reported a number of cars set alight on the outskirt of the city.
France has a large number of dual nationality French-Algerians due to the country's colonial history. More than half of the Algerian football team are players who were actually born, raised or trained in France.
The match in Cairo is a testament to the enduring human ties between France and Algeria which was ruled from Paris for 130 years.
(FRANCE 24 with AP, AFP)
