PSG ultras boycott Lens clash over Trophée des champions venue dispute

Sunday 16 August 2026 - 09:30

By: Sahili Aya

PSG ultras boycott Lens clash over Trophée des champions venue dispute

The Collectif Ultras Paris (CUP), the main ultra supporters' group associated with Paris Saint-Germain, has decided not to travel to Lens for Sunday's Trophée des champions meeting between PSG and RC Lens.

The decision is not primarily about the distance between the two cities. Instead, the group is challenging the way the French Professional Football League (LFP) selected the venue and, more broadly, the conditions under which the season-opening trophy is being staged.

The match is scheduled for 8:45 p.m. at Lens' Bollaert-Delelis stadium, meaning PSG will effectively play the fixture in an environment where the home side's supporters are expected to have a strong presence.

A venue chosen by draw

The dispute began when the LFP used a random draw to determine whether the 2026 Trophée des champions would be played in Paris or Lens. Lens won the draw and was therefore awarded home advantage.

For the CUP, that process is incompatible with the nature of a competition that is supposed to be played on neutral ground. The supporters' group argues that both sets of fans should have comparable access to tickets and that neither club should benefit from playing in its own stadium.

The fact that Paris is only around an hour from Lens does little to address the group's central objection. From the CUP's perspective, the issue is the principle of neutrality rather than the practical difficulty of travelling to the match.

The ultras challenge the LFP's approach

The supporters have criticised the LFP's organisation of the event, arguing that the competition should be designed as a genuine football celebration rather than decided through a mechanism that effectively gives one team home advantage.

Their boycott is consequently intended as a statement directed at the league rather than at Lens or its supporters.

The decision also leaves open the possibility that individual PSG fans could attend the game independently. The CUP has made clear that its position does not prevent supporters from making their own choice about whether to be present at Bollaert.

A familiar tension over the Trophée des champions

The controversy illustrates a recurring debate surrounding the Trophée des champions: how to balance the league's desire to stage an attractive event with supporters' expectations of sporting neutrality and accessibility.

The competition has previously been organised outside France, while other editions have also generated disputes over venues, ticketing and the treatment of travelling supporters. The CUP's current position fits into that longer-running tension between football authorities and organised fan groups.

For PSG, Sunday's match will therefore take place without the organised support normally provided by the CUP. The group plans instead to reunite with the team at the Parc des Princes for PSG's first Ligue 1 home fixture of the season against Rennes.

The boycott is thus unlikely to mark a withdrawal from supporting the club. Rather, it represents a targeted protest against the organisation of one particular fixture and the principle of allowing a draw to determine the venue of a major trophy match.