On  the last weekend of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, I went back to France. However, I did not make it to the capital, but to Lille, a city in the North of France, close to the Belgian border. I was really looking forward to be back in the city. In December 2023, I had been to Stade Pierre-Mauroy to support one of my favorite soccer clubs, KI Klaksvik from the Faroe Islands, in their UEFA Conference League match vs. OSC Lille. This time, the roof of the stadium was closed and the pitch was much smaller. On 10th August 2024, I visited the finals of the Olympic women handball tournaments. Here is my review.

 

Stade Pierre-Mauroy – Location & Transport

Outside Olympic days, the stadium is officially named Decathlon Arena Stade Pierre Mauroy. Pierre Mauroy has been the major of Lille for 28 years.It is located in the South of the city, rather close to the airport. There is a small area with two hotels and some stores next to the stadium. On the opposite side of the road in the North of it, the M506, there is a large shopping district with stores and restaurants.There are a couple of other hotels in the area.

The infrastructure around the stadium is excellent. You reach several motorways very quickly. The area features several parking garages, which serve the stadium. There is also a metro station for the stadium, 4 Cantons Grand Stade (line M1), which is a some ten minute walk away Southeast of the stadium as well. Even though I had parking tickets for two different parking lots, one in the East for the bronze medal match and one in the West for the gold medal match, I could stay in one parking garage for the whole day, which was very handy. Like in my Paris experiences, the directions were excellently given around the stadium. There was also a shuttle bus to Lille Central Station.

 

 

Stade Pierre-Mauroy – The Arena

Decathlon Arena Stade Pierre Mauroy is the home ground of OSC Lille. In the full capacity soccer configuration, it holds  just over 50,000 people for French league matches and some 500 people less for international matches. The roof can be closed so and the pitch can be removed so that about one half of the stadium turns into an indoor arena with a capacity of up to 29,500 people. Due to the technical facilities at the Olympics, the Paris 2024 capacity was likely slightly lower. In this configuration, the stadium did not only host Olympic handball and basketball, but also hosted the Davis Cup Finals in tennis twice, in 2014 and 2017. It is also used for concerts. I was especially amazed by the great and pleasant air conditioning.

For the first match I attended, the bronze medal match between Denmark and Sweden, I had tickets in the second lowest category. To my surprise, I ended up in the corner of the additional courtside seats. It was a bit of narrow and the seats felt basic, but the view was amazing. Routes to food and services were rather short as well.

 

First Category in the Business Loge Area

For the gold medal match, I had the so-called First category, seats in the business loge area of the stadium, but without any hospitality. At my Olympic Rugby Sevens experience at Stade de France, this category came with quite some struggle and overall, I was not too pleased. In Lille, the experience was much better. The stadium majorly has larger loges, so that the seat layout was no issue. The upholstery of the seats could have been better, but apart from that, it was really relaxed and you also had toilets and food nearby. The view, though, was likely better from my “cheap” seat. But I really enjoyed both experiences.

Nonetheless, I feel that the IOC should have given the First category spectators some sort of add-on to their visit. At least compared to the next lower category of tickets (category A), the upgrade was questionable.

 

Stade Pierre-Mauroy – Atmosphere

The bronze medal match was not sold out at all. The stadium was roughly running in a capacity of 50 to 60 per cent. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was great. I also liked that the announcements in the arena were rather leveled between French and English ones – in my visit to Paris, some venues too strongly leaned towards the local language. The hosts were really keen to give everyone a good time – and so the people had. I also liked that the Lille crowd did not start cheering for the French team, even though they were not playing at that time. Also the neutral and local people cheered for the players and the interesting match, even after it was finished.

Gold Medal Match

Of course, with the French team playing for the golden medal, the atmosphere was massive in the second match. Even though the first pictures might suggest that it was a bit of chaotic, it was not at all the case. People were very disciplined and friendly. The French national anthem at the beginning of the match and the people pushing their team (before Norway more and more made clear that they will go for gold on that day). The atmosphere was very good and fair. No booing or something similar (apart from 7m penalty shots and similar situations, where people tried to distract the opponent). Almost nobody left after the match or after France received the silver medal in the medal ceremony. I really liked how respectful people treated all teams on that day in Lille. Bad luck that you heard quite a ot of Allez le bleus during the men’s final in TV.

 

Stade Pierre-Mauroy – Merchandise & Food

Unfortunately, there was no major merchandise store as they had one during the field hockey matches at Stade Yves-du-Manoir, for example. However, there were several vending booths around the stadium. The lines were reasonable. Buying merchandise at the Paris 2024 is a bit of a lottery, as the items they sell is somehow not consistent. I would have loved to have an Olympic handball shirt (maybe it was sold out?). On the other hand one shop sold 3×3 basketball merchandise – a sports which had not been played in Lille at all.

Before and between the matches, the food situation was great. Apart from the shopping mall around, the vending booths which are typically open for soccer matches (and don’t sell Olympic food) were a great factor for that. In the venues, food was a bit limited in selection, but it was much easier to grab a bite than at Stade de France, for example. The business loge section I was in had two food stands, one for hot dogs, sandwiches and drinks, and an ice cream vendor. Fun fact: food was cheaper in Lille than in Paris. A hot dog was 7 EUR (Paris: 9 EUR) and exactly the same Ben & Jerrys ice cream I had n Paris for 6 EUR was 4 EUR in Lille.

 

Stade Pierre-Mauroy – Services

Access to the stadium worked really well. In contrast to my Stade de France experience, where you had long lines and multiple security checks, especially to the loge level, the experience in Lille was really relaxed. A key difference of my visit to Northern France was also that people did speak English. In Paris, there have been multiple volunteers and security staff members who even spoke French when you spoke to them in English. No experience like that in Lille, the people very very relaxed and helpful.

Before, between and after the matches, it was really enjoyable to hang out. Some food providers, a DJ tower and some places to meet the mascot Phryge (a special thanks to the volunteers who put on that costume at 30 degrees!) made visiting the Olympic Games in Lille even more enjoyable.

 

Handball at Stade Pierre-Mauroy – My View

I loved Lille in December 2023 for soccer – and I like it at least as much for the Olympic Games. Stade Piere Mauroy had such a lovely and relaxed flair, the organization and the atmosphere were great. I also felt that Lille rather delivered what people need compared to what looks good in the media. To me, Lille definitely was the better experience during the 2024 Olympic Games.

 

Postings about Handball

Here are all my postings related to handball:

 

Faroe Islands

Here are my postings related to the Faroe Islands: