In the closing minutes of the first half, while Saint-Étienne led Lyon 1-0 at their home stadium, assistant referee Mehdi Rahmouni was struck on the head by an object, believed to be a coin, from the sidelines. Immediately after the incident, referee François Letexier ordered the match to be halted and directed all players to the locker room.

45-Minute Suspension in a Tense Atmosphere

The match was suspended for nearly 45 minutes. Tournament officials held an emergency meeting to discuss whether to resume or cancel the game entirely. Around 10:05 PM local time, it was determined that Rahmouni had not suffered bleeding despite the impact and only experienced slight dizziness. After taking Doliprane, he decided to continue officiating. The match eventually resumed at 10:15 PM local time.

Standing Areas Continue to Cause Trouble

Before the match, the stadium stands witnessed multiple explosions of pyrotechnics and smoke bombs—behavior that had previously led to partial capacity suspensions. However, it appears the object thrown at the assistant referee came from the section designated for away fans, which had been allocated to Saint-Étienne supporters due to Lyon fans’ absence.

This incident comes as the French Interior Ministry recently called for the dissolution of two extremist fan groups of Saint-Étienne, known as Green Angels and Magic Fans. The event may accelerate the dissolution process.