The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the New Orleans Saints in the NFL’s first game in France, played at Stade de France in Paris. The match went ahead after a week of protests and civil unrest in the city linked to anger over public living costs and deteriorating public services, including violence, looting and vandalism.
The NFL worked with Parisian police, French national authorities and the U.S. State Department on security for spectators and the surrounding area. Commissioner Roger Goodell, Saints owner Gayle Benson and Steelers owner Art Rooney II met President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace to review safety plans. President Donald Trump said he was "worried about it" regarding the Steelers-Saints matchup. Goodell said the game would go off without a hitch, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that to OutKick. Paris Saint-Germain postponed its Saturday match to Monday because of the unrest; the NFL did not postpone.
Fans who attended told OutKick the disruption stayed limited. Outside Stade de France, one said, "If I’m being honest, I have not seen enough. I’ve seen some graffiti everywhere, but I haven’t seen anything myself." Another said, "For the most part, it hasn’t been a problem. There’s been a few delays and disturbances, but it hasn’t been that big of a problem." A fan who travelled from Mexico, where he said protests over violent crime, working conditions and housing costs are familiar, said, "[It] don’t matter. Mexico is almost the same," and added, "We have a bad government. I don’t care. I don’t care [about] the problems in France. It’s OK for me. I came for the game."
Others described boarded-up shops and cracked glass. One said, "But other than that, the city seems great. It’s not as bad as I was expecting," and added, "There’s a lot of really beautiful things that they’re hurting for no reason. I understand they want to speak their voice, but they’re doing things that shouldn’t be done – vandalizing monuments and stuff. It’s not worth it." Another said protesters had gone too far "when they start tearing stuff up" and "when they start burning vehicles and stuff."
Five international games remain on the 2026 NFL schedule. The Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Falcons play in Madrid in Week 9, the New England Patriots and Detroit Lions play in Munich in Week 10, and the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers play in Mexico City the following week.