“They are savages”: Samir, who came to watch a football match at the Henri Noël stadium in Nîmes, was beaten up and recounts his attack

After his attack, Samir Benhamida filed a complaint. Midi Libre – ALEXIS BETHUNE

For refusing to lower his eyes, the Rousson educator was lynched.

“I stand by my words: my attackers are savages. They respect nothing and no one. It's a reflection of France today. It's the law of the most brutal that prevails.” Samir Benhamida, who came to watch a youth football match at the Henri Noël stadium, was beaten up because he refused to lower his eyes.

On Saturday, December 7, the AS Rousson under-17s met their counterparts from Mas de Mingue for the Regional 1 championship.

A manager of the Cévennes club, under-10 coach, sports trainer and educator by profession, Samir is also president of the “Sport éduc” association, a structure for education and integration through sport.

Eight days of ITT and a complaint filed

“Throughout the match, Rousson's team played under pressure. As we know, it's never easy to play at Mas de Mingue, the coach recalls. There were threats and insults throughout the match. Well, some will say that it's folklore… let's move on.”

The match ends with a draw: one to one. “I come down from the stands and wait for our players in front of the locker room door, outside the stadium. That's when a young man of about 25 calls out to me with clenched fists, already ready to fight.”

The man asks him to lower his eyes. Which Samir refuses to do. The tone rises. A coach from Mas de Mingue intervenes and warns: “Samir, stop, they're going to kill you.”

A manager from the Nîmes club, sensing the situation getting tense, grabs Samir to take him to safety. “He turns me around to take me to safety. That's when my attacker struck the first blow, while I was turned around. I hadn't seen that around twenty people had gathered behind me. They jumped on me and literally lynched me. I was beaten up.”

The victim taken to safety by the leaders of the Nîmes club

The two leaders of Mas de Mingue intervened as best they could. They too took blows in the process but managed to extract Samir. “Without them, I wouldn't be here anymore. If I had fallen, I would have died.”

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Result: eight days of temporary work interruption. A head trauma, a large hematoma in the left eye coupled with a conjunctival hemorrhage.

The next day, Sunday December 8, Samir filed a complaint at the Nîmes police station.

“This behavior has no place in football, but it is a reflection of today's society, denounces the sports instructor. For these people, there are no rules, no laws, except their own. At some point, football authorities must do what is necessary to punish these actions. It would be good if those responsible would leave their offices and come to the edge of the pitch. They would probably have a different view of things. I will write letters to the departmental, regional and national authorities so that these acts do not go unpunished. That is why I have taken legal action.”

The authorities are stepping aside

The president of the Mas de Mingue football club, Mounir Saoudi, deplores this incident “which took place outside the stadium”. The manager clarifies his thoughts: “I am not a police officer or in charge of public safety. I did not witness the events mentioned that occurred after the match. What I can say is that everything went well on the pitch. There were no incidents during the match and that is what I am responsible for.”

When contacted, the legal department of the Occitanie Football League “has no feedback on these events to date (Tuesday, December 10, Editor's note). In the event that the file is forwarded, we will not comment on ongoing cases”.

“Mouss” Guiza, sports director of AS Rousson: “We are the only ones to denounce the facts”

After the alleged racist insults suffered in Vigan, the Rousson club finds itself, in its own defense, once again in the spotlight. A spectator, also a manager, but who did not have an official function for the match of December 7, at the Mas de Mingue, was assaulted and seriously injured.

“What are the authorities doing ?, asks Mustapha “Mouss” Guiza, sports director of AS Rousson. We had the bus broken at Petit Bard, we didn't get a phone call from the authorities. We trivialize these incidents too much until the day there will be a tragedy. I spoke to the president of the Mas de Mingue: he is dejected. I felt he was powerless. You can't let these serious incidents go by. The club is clearly doing what it can, but the environment is complicated. I'm fed up. I have the impression that we are the only ones, at Rousson, to stand up and denounce the dysfunctions. It's hopeless.”

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