Important Info for Galatasaray fans coming to Lille for the UCL Game
Hi,
This is a message for the many supporters of Galatasaray who have or will have tickets to the game opposing your team to LOSC in Champion's League, two weeks from today.
The prefect office managing the area the stadium is located in has taken some special measures around the game (as we see -unfortunately- way too often including in domestic league games) forbidding "anyone who claims to be a supporter or sympathiser of Galatasaray FK" to be around the stadium prior to the game, outside the dedicated away fan area. Here is the communication from LOSC :
>L’accès à la Decathlon Arena Stade Pierre Mauroy ainsi que les abords du stade seront en effet interdits à toute personne se prévalant de la qualité de supporter ou sympathisant du Galatasaray FK, ou se comportant comme tel, en dehors de la zone visiteurs dédiée.
As per my paragraph above.
>Cela signifie notamment l’interdiction, en dehors de cette zone visiteurs donc, de se vêtir d’un maillot, écharpe ou de tout signe distinctif, ou d’adopter un comportement manifeste de sympathisant du Galatasaray SK, dans le stade comme aux abords.
This means the forbidding, outside the away area, to wear a shirt, scarf or any other distinctive sign or to behave in a way that gives you away as a Galatasaray fan, inside the stadium like outside.
>Les contrevenants s’exposent à se voir confisquer leur billet et interdire l’accès au stade, à être expulsé de l’enceinte et potentiellement pris en charge par les forces de police. Les personnes démunies de billet s’exposent aux mêmes risques.
Those who break the rules expose themselves to seeing their tickets confiscated, not being allowed in the stadium and potentially be taken by police. Those without tickets share the same risks.
It is not the first time we see this and these kind of measures are usually loosely enforced, but the international factor, and the fact that you will fill the away stands to the brim (and possibly more) means that the authorities might be a little less lenient this time around.
I wanted to share this information as I know some of you will travel quite a bit with home tickets to see your team, and it would be a shame to be denied entry.
Those of you who really want to see the match should consider coming in a neutral outfit and avoid giving yourselves away (be discreet around cops, dont speak to them, and if anyone asks you're not a Gala fan but just a Turkish person travelling for work and taking advantage to watch champions league football).
Voila, good luck for the game, may the best win and I hope you get to enjoy our city ahead of the game !