Prosecutors in Nice have begun an investigation into the chaotic and violent scenes at Sunday night’s clash between Nice and Olympique de Marseille (OM) that led to the match being abandoned.

“An investigation is underway, but no-one is in custody” at this stage, the public prosecutor’s office said.

The French Ligue 1 match was abandoned an hour and a half after supporters invaded the pitch following an incident that ignited the match: yet another plastic bottle thrown at Dimitri Payet, which the player threw back into the crowd.

Nice were leading 1-0, but the game did not end. A week after a match in Montpellier was halted after supporters also threw bottles onto the pitch, again against Marseille, French football experienced more trouble on the third weekend of the new season which has seen crowds return to stadiums after a year behind closed doors.

After a 90-minute delay, the match was abandoned by the referee, Benoît Bastien, following the refusal of Marseille players to come back out onto the pitch.

“The League (LFP) decided to resume the match. We decided for the safety of our players, who were attacked during the pitch invasion, not to resume because the safety of our players was not guaranteed, “said OM President Pablo Longoria in a video sent to the media.

“The referee agreed with us, he confirmed to (Marseille coach) Jorge Sampaoli and me that safety was not guaranteed and decided to stop the game,” the Spaniard continued, calling for sanctions.

“What happened today is completely unacceptable, we must set a precedent for French football.”

 

Cuts and bruises

Photos circulated on social media showed injuries to Marseille players, Luan Peres suffering cuts to the neck and Payet a scratched back.

As anger spilled over, Marseille coach Sampaoli had to be held back by members of his staff to prevent him from fighting.