NFL House in Paris closes ahead of more protests
The NFL closed its "NFL House" in Paris on Saturday as the city braced for street protests with a heavy police presence and storefronts boarded up.
The league announced the closure to fans on Saturday morning through its "OnePass" app and it came a day after closing its pop-up NFL shop — in both cases citing "potential accessibility issues."
Security concerns have overshadowed the NFL's debut in Paris. The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the New Orleans Saints on Sunday at Stade de France in the league's first-ever regular-season game in France.
Events planned Saturday at NFL House included "French Athletes in Football" and "From the Field to the Community."
Also Saturday, the Saints announced that "Saints House has been postponed until Sunday." A weekend event for Steelers fans in Bastille was canceled Thursday because of security concerns.
Major museums including the Louvre and Orsay Museum are closed Saturday, though tourists were lined up to enter Notre Dame Cathedral. French authorities are intent on preventing a repeat of recent violent unrest.
The U.S. State Department this week issued a security alert that cautioned "Americans in Paris for the NFL game" to "exercise caution and be aware of their surroundings" because of protests.
Leading up to the game, Steelers fans have been weighing whether to travel to Paris. One fan decided to change his trip to Madrid and Barcelona, saying for the amount of money he was spending, going to France would be "a roll of the dice." Meanwhile, two Steelers fans in Paris told KDKA that they're remaining cautious and haven't felt unsafe yet.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said this week that preparations were made in consultation with U.S. and French authorities. Street protests, he said, "are not unusual in France."
On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron met with Goodell along with Saints owner Gayle Benson and Steelers owners Art Rooney II at the Élysée Palace to "discuss Sunday's game and the long-term future of the NFL in Paris."
The NFL said Friday that its pop-up shop in the city center would be closed Saturday but that fans could use an alternative shop set up at Stade de France, located north of the city in Saint-Denis.
The Steelers arrived in Paris on Friday while the Saints have been there since Monday.