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10/24 05:49 CDT NFL House in Paris closes ahead of street protests in French
capital
NFL House in Paris closes ahead of street protests in French capital
By KEN MAGUIRE
AP Sports Writer
PARIS (AP) --- 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 New Orleans
Saints will play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at Stade de France in the
league's first-ever regular-season game in France.
Also Saturday, the Saints announced that " Saints House has been postponed
until Sunday."
Events planned Saturday at NFL House included "French Athletes in Football" and
"From the Field to the Community."
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.
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 lyse 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.
A weekend event for Steelers fans was canceled Thursday because of security
concerns.
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