Thousands of OGC Nice supporters want to travel to the Stade de France for the French Cup final against RC Lens on May 22. But the rise in train and plane ticket prices is causing a fierce controversy between Éric Ciotti and Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot.
On May 22, the French Cup final will pit Racing Club de Lens against OGC Nice at the Stade de France. Around 20,000 Nice supporters are expected at the Paris venue to support the Gym in an important match for the Azure club’s season.
But before the match, another issue is already stirring supporters: the cost of traveling between Nice and Paris. Between train tickets costing several hundred euros, flights with sharp increases, and complete journeys, many fans still don’t know if they’ll be able to attend the final.
To reach the capital, OGC Nice supporters will have to cover 933 kilometers. The price of a round-trip train ticket from Nice currently reaches 256 euros. A few days earlier, some tickets exceeded 320 euros.
Facing this situation, Nice’s mayor Éric Ciotti announced having spoken with Jean Castex, CEO of the SNCF. Following the discussions, two additional trains were made available to Nice supporters. More than 2,000 round-trip seats will be offered in total for the final.
Éric Ciotti and Philippe Tabarot clash over transport prices
In a letter to the Transport Minister, Éric Ciotti denounces increases deemed “unacceptable” and “indecent”. The Nice mayor believes that transport companies are taking advantage of a popular event to raise prices.
“I have just written to the Transport Minister to express my anger at certain price increases today that risk preventing OGC Nice supporters from attending the French Cup on May 22. We are seeing an explosion in train ticket prices, we are seeing an explosion in the cost of plane tickets. All of this is unacceptable. All of this is indecent. We have no right to make money off a popular celebration, off the French Cup. These are national companies that are heavily supported by public funding. Well, at some point they need to be aware that they also belong to the national community. So I wrote to the Transport Minister this morning. To tell him to intervene, to stop today this increase that amounts to a form of completely intolerable extortion.”
Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot responded in a statement. The minister, originally from Cannes, states that the State does not intervene in setting ticket prices. “Some seek to instrumentalize politically the question of access to this beautiful popular event that is the French Cup football final. Here are the facts. To enable Nice residents to travel across the country and support their team at the Stade de France, at the Club’s request, I mobilized the SNCF which, during a period of very high traffic, increased supply between Nice and Paris by providing two additional trains with 500 seats each, specially dedicated to supporters, or more than 2,000 round-trip seats in total. The Government sets neither plane ticket nor train ticket prices. The fares offered by the SNCF for this round trip are, moreover, in line with those practiced during this bridge weekend, and take into account the necessary security measures for a trip of this type.”
The response did not calm the controversy. Éric Ciotti then declared: “the definition of a useless minister! Yet Philippe Tabarot is elected senator of the Alpes-Maritimes with votes from Nice’s major electors. Contempt, arrogance and incompetence… Nice residents are victims of a scandalous injustice!”
Philippe Tabarot replied a few hours later: “Mr. Deputy-Mayor, your election campaign is over. Your desire to shift your responsibilities onto others is regrettable. I always defend the interests of this department and the city of Nice – most recently in the context of organizing the 2030 Winter Olympics. I did my part to help OGC Nice supporters attend this beautiful final in Paris. Do yours, as all the municipalities in France do for such an event, by concretely helping supporters attend this magnificent event which will, I hope, see the victory of the Eagles.”
Plane tickets exceeding 400 euros for Nice-Paris
Air transport also shows high prices as the French Cup final approaches. For a departure on Friday, May 22, Nice-Paris tickets offered by EasyJet range between 249 and 299 euros for a one-way flight. With Transavia, some flights exceed 350 euros depending on the chosen times. Several Air France tickets to Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle also exceed 400 euros.
Faced with these prices, several supporters are turning to carpooling. The StadiumGO platform, relayed by OGC Nice, offers journeys between supporters. Trips are also available on BlaBlaCar for around 90 euros for a one-way trip. BlaBlaBus tickets reach up to 70 euros for the outbound journey.
To the cost of transport is added that of tickets for the final at the Stade de France. Prices vary between 29 and 120 euros depending on categories. Category 1 seats are offered at 120 euros, compared to 95 euros for category 2, 79 euros for category 3, 55 euros for category 4, and 29 euros for category 5.
For supporters who cannot travel to Paris, the city of Nice plans to broadcast the match on a giant screen at Place Masséna, near the water mirror.
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