Pyrotechnics in Bruges: Lens bans its ultras from Lille derby and faces €80,000 UEFA fine

RC Lens announced on Wednesday that it would not open its away section for the Ligue 1 derby at Lille this Friday, in response to pyrotechnic incidents committed by some of its ultras during the 3-0 defeat in Bruges in the Champions League the previous week. The decision is backed by a prefectural order from Nord banning Lens supporters from access to Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

During the trip to Belgium, flares had been thrown directly onto the pitch and into the stand below, occupied by the Handifan Club de Lens, the club’s disabled supporters group. Lens management described these acts as “extremely serious,” stating that they had “damaged the image of RC Lens and its supporters in Europe’s most prestigious competition.”

In its statement, the club recalled that commitments had been formally agreed upon jointly with supporter groups following previous incidents at Metz, Lille, London and Reims. “A red line has been crossed. This line was nothing if not explicit,” the management wrote, clarifying that the closure of the away section pursues “a dual objective: to punish and to prevent.”

On the European front, UEFA’s disciplinary commission handed down a severe verdict, aggravated by recidivism — Lens supporters had already been warned following a trip to Prague. The northern club faces a €80,000 fine and a total ban on away travel for its next two away matches in the Champions League. The Lens away section will remain empty at Leipzig on November 24 and at Liverpool on January 27, with a third match held in abeyance.