Sports

Paris Terrorist Attacks: German National Team Forced To Spend The Night At Stade de France

Published on: November 14, 2015 at 9:42 AM
By Mohit Priyadarshi

In the aftermath of the deadly Paris terrorist attacks that shocked the French capital last night, the German national team was made to spend the night at Stade de France, according to reports.

As reported by Inquisitr , Paris was struck by a spate of lethal attacks yesterday , in which at least 127 people were killed and many more were injured. The attacks forced France to close its international borders for the first time since the end of World War II, while the French capital was placed under a city-wide curfew for the first time since Nazi troops occupied Paris in 1944.

Latest reports suggested that there were seven attacks in total, including two explosions and a deadly suicide attack at a bar near France’s national soccer stadium, the State de France. The attacks took place during an international friendly between Germany and France, which was being attended by French president François Hollande.

According to the Guardian, the president was escorted to safety at halftime, after reports of terrorist attacks emerged for the first time. However, the game was allowed to continue, with France winning the game 2-0, but only on the pitch. Outside, the city of Paris was in tatters.

French Football Federation president Noel le Graet confirmed that one of the explosions occurred at Gate J of the Stade de France, where at least three people were reported to have been killed. The explosion was audible during the live telecast of the game.

There were scenes of pandemonium after the game, with fans allowed to congregate on the pitch. A video shot by soccer fans at the Stade de France was uploaded to Twitter, with a (translated) caption, “helicopter, pitch invaded, surreal scenes.”

The attacks might have killed many and left scores of people wounded in its wake, but soccer fans were defiant in their solidarity. A video uploaded to Facebook by a female fan attending the game, Kari Olive, showed fans singing the national anthem, “La Marseillaise,” as they were forced to evacuate the Stade de France stadium.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iQ2cHuZ0xE

According to Independent , however, the German national team and backroom staff decided to remain in their dressing room overnight. Speaking to Goal.com after the game, German team coach Joachim Loew said the game lost all its significance in light of the terrorist attacks.

“We’re all shaken and shocked. For me personally the game and the sport loses importance. We’re at a loss. We are all in shock. The game and the goals move into the background on a day like this. We were told in the changing rooms what had happened. All of us on the bench were a bit scared because of a bomb threat earlier today when we spent three hours outside (our hotel).”

Sky Sports reported earlier that the German national team were evacuated from Hotel Molitor on Friday morning after authorities said an anonymous caller threatened that a bomb had been placed in the premises at about 9:50 a.m. local time.

Even then, nobody could have quite guessed what was in store for the city of Paris as the day wore on. German national team manager said a sense of fear pervaded the dressing room after the game and all the players quickly took to their mobile phones to inform their families of their well-being.

“There was a big uncertainty, a big fear and a strange mood in the locker room. It was noticeable, how shocked the players were. They picked up their phones right away to inform themselves or call home.”

Players and clubs took to Twitter in the aftermath of the Paris terrorist attacks to condemn the attacks and express their solidarity with the victims’ families.

The German national team players are expected to return to Frankfurt by Saturday afternoon. Though the French side are expected to halt their international commitments, their friendly against England on Tuesday is still scheduled to go ahead as planned .

[Photo by Alex Grimm /Getty Images Sport]

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