Ligue 1 game abandoned as mass brawl breaks out during Marseilles’ match with Nice

The Ligue 1 clash between Marseille and Nice was abandoned last night due to a mass brawl and pitch invasion.

With just 15 minutes left to play in a game that saw Nice winning 1-0 thanks to a second half strike from Kasper Dolberg, chaos ensued when a bottle was thrown at the head of Marseille’s Dimitri Payet. The former West Ham star returned fire and prompted quite the scene with supporters flooding onto the pitch in what can only be described as an unbelievable escalation.

Ligue 1 drama

Players, coaches and security staff all got involved with officials having no choice but to abandon the fixture on the spot.

Nice’s first team came back out to applaud the home fans who were still in the stadium, whereas the Marseille contingent did not – which, in hindsight, was probably the right move.

https://twitter.com/gexmsvivi/status/1429540416899092482

“Our players were attacked,” Marseille’s president Pablo Longoria said. “We decided for the safety of our players, who were attacked during the pitch invasion, not to resume the match because the safety of our players was not guaranteed.”

In response, Nice’s president Jean-Pierre Rivere wanted to ensure that their opponents’ role in the incident didn’t fly under the radar.

“It’s disappointing that the game ended like this,” he said. “Everyone saw what happened. We can’t deny that water bottles were thrown because we could all see it. What ignited the clashes was the reaction of two Marseille players who retaliated. 

“Afterwards, it is deplorable that the Marseille security staff intervened on the ground and hit our players.”

As of this writing, no confirmation has been given regarding a rescheduled date for the game.

Featured image credit: Getty