What will be the atmosphere in the Cauldron, on October 1, during the derby… against Grenoble in Ligue 2? Sanctioned by 3 firm points but also deprived of its public for the first four home games of the season, AS Saint-Etienne will begin its recovery operation in more than delicate conditions. And above all, there is no guarantee that the famous Saint-Etienne fervor will return to Geoffroy-Guichard at the end of the behind closed doors sanction (which comes with two suspended matches). The terrible post-dam return against AJ Auxerre, on May 29, which Pascal Dupraz described as “scenes of war”, indeed pushed the leaders of Saint-Etienne to review their management of the ultras.
The main groups (Magic Fans, Green Angels and Indépendantistes stéphanois) come in this regard to publish a joint press release on Monday to point out the management of the “supporter file” by Roland Romeyer. “We know today that the management of ASSE is working on various avenues: nominative ticketing both at home and outside, commercial bans on stadiums, but also the ban on tifos and other equipment. animation in our kops”, explain the three groups of supporters.
The members of the kops wait before taking their subscription
So many developments that would be incompatible with the refrain that is dear to them: “Freedom for the ultras”. “From the sad evening of May 29, 2022, we will not agree to bear sole responsibility for the events while ASSE and the public authorities once again reject any form of questioning”, continues the press release, which then targets the duo composed of Roland Romeyer and Jean-François Soucasse, accused of “attacking our stands and our stadium by drawing inspiration directly from the Leproux method”.
Namely the plan put in place in the spring of 2010 by Robin Leproux, president of PSG, to eradicate violence between Parisian supporters. This had led to the death of one of them, Yann Lorence, near the Parc des Princes. This Leproux plan had led to the end of the ultra groups in the bends, which these Saint-Etienne supporters obviously fear. “Geoffroy-Guichard may only have Chaudron in name,” they conclude. They encourage their members to wait before taking out their subscription, while the campaign for the 2022-2023 season in Ligue 2 was launched on Monday by ASSE.