Two years from Paris Olympics, shortage of Stadiers raises fears of “a disaster”

For unions, the creation of a temporary status of security agent will not meet the needs of the 2023 rugby world cup or to those of the 2024 games.

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The images of Stadiers overwhelmed by rescliers climbing the gates of the Stade de France, on May 28, during the final of the Champions League between Liverpool and Real Madrid, went around the world. The next day, at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium, stadiums were again overwhelmed, this time by Ultras from Saint-Etienne who invaded the lawn, some going so far as to launch smoke in the stands.

Throughout the Ligue 1 season, the multiplication of incidents in the stadiums has highlighted the difficulties faced by those improperly called “stewards” or “stadiers”. People in fluorescent outfit who make palpations at the entrance to sports speakers, control tickets, monitor access and supervise crowds are actually security guards who carry out occasional missions in stages.

“In thirty years, the profession has professionalized. They are no longer students who do this to pay their studies. To exercise this activity, you have to hold the professional card of private security agent”, Specifies Stéphane Boudon, president of SNEPS-CFTC, the main union of the profession. This professional card is issued by the National Council for Private Security Activities (CNAPS), which depends on the Ministry of the Interior. Renewable every five years, it is obtained after a hundred and seventy-five hours of training.

“We go to a disaster”

The conditions for his obtaining have been hardened in recent years: in addition to a virgin criminal record, we must now have been present for at least five years on French territory and master the French language to apply. “We walk on our heads: we harden access to this profession while security companies cannot already recruit,” said Mr. Boudon. “It is currently missing between 10,000 and 20,000 stadiers in France. We are sometimes forced to bring them from Montpellier or Grenoble. We go to a disaster if things do not move,” adds Xavier Pierrot, deputy managing director in charge of Groupama Stadium, in Lyon.

About 300,000 people hold the professional security agent card, but the number of stadiers is impossible to estimate, because it is an extra activity for people working in other branches more sustainable private security, such as fire safety.

At the start of the COVVI-19 pandemic, which caused the cancellation of many games, many have converted into other trades and are missing. The situation is all the more tense since those who have stayed in security prefer to earn more by working on concerts.

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/Media reports.