- Paris is hosting the Summer Olympics and we attended one of the events in Marseille.
- Marseille is home to one of the stadiums hosting the Olympic Games, and the journey there by train was not bad.
- This story is part of “Road to Paris,” a series documenting the experiences of athletes and spectators at the Olympic Games.
This year’s Summer Olympics are taking place in Paris, but the games have not started there.
My husband and I secured tickets to the Olympics while we were in the United States in May 2023. We were working on our visas but weren’t sure if we would be living in France by the time of the Games.
We got up in the middle of the night to queue up for tickets with other hopefuls from all over the world. To be honest, it wasn’t that difficult to get some.
And the tickets weren’t very expensive either, unless you wanted to watch the highly anticipated finals in women’s gymnastics or men’s basketball – which, after I got through the queue, each cost over 300 euros.
Most of the events I saw started at €25 and there were plenty of them. I got us tickets for table tennis, golf, swimming and track and field. A pair of tickets for all four events cost about €520, so a total of about $571.
A few months later, we were living just outside of Paris and the games were getting closer and closer.
Eight weeks before the opening ceremony, I checked to see what tickets were left. Thanks to the size of the stadiums, football tickets were cheap and plentiful – and at around 65 euros each for middle row seats, they were also within our budget.
One men’s soccer match in particular caught my eye: the USA (our home country) against France (our adopted country).
The game actually took place outside of Paris
Our train ride was full of scenic views. Agnes Groonwald
The game was special because it was the first appearance of the U.S. men’s soccer team since 2008 and it was in our new home country, so we bought tickets.
But the game actually took place in Marseille, about a 3 ½ hour train ride from Paris. It turns out that most of the stadiums hosting Olympic football matches this year are not in Paris at all.
We didn’t think our first event would take us so far from the host city, but that wasn’t a big problem as there are many trains in France that are relatively cheap even if you travel at short notice – around 85 euros for a round trip.
My husband and I took the train to Marseille. Agnes Groonwald
To get to the stadium, we took a regional train from our home in the suburbs of Paris to catch our high-speed train for the journey south.
The Marseille metro seemed pretty well organized as we drove through it. Agnes Groonwald
Despite the crowds, public transport to and from the stadium was manageable and efficient.
The stations we passed also seemed to be well staffed, and there were staff members to answer visitors’ questions.
The atmosphere in front of the stadium was great
Crowds had gathered around the Marseille stadium. Agnes Groonwald
According to our tickets, we were supposed to arrive more than two hours before the game started, but we arrived at the stadium about an hour before kick-off without any incidents.
Outside the stadium we treated ourselves to refreshments and enjoyed the lively atmosphere.
We chatted with other Americans who were in town for the games, including a family from the Midwest who follows the U.S. soccer teams on the French Riviera.
The Americans were the lovable outsiders in the group, and so there was some small banter throughout the afternoon.
We heard things like, “I think we’re going to win!” and “Good luck, but not too much!” as we strolled past the food stands outside the stadium with our matching headbands.
Overall we had a great experience
The Marseille stadium is huge. Agnes Groonwald
Access to the Marseille stadium, also called Stade Vélodrome, was very easy.
There was a significant security presence in the stadium and the route to our seats was orderly, with arena staff directing visitors using giant foam fingers and megaphones.
We had a pretty good view of the pitch. Agnes Groonwald
Once we reached our seats, which were about halfway up the stadium, we got the full French pre-match treatment.
We heard boos and some French fans singing a song about setting your enemies on fire, but no one heckled.
As the clock ran out, the French led 3-0. (The Americans kept up for most of the first half.)
French flags flew during the USA vs. France soccer match. Agnes Groonwald
After the game, leaving the stadium was also orderly.
We thought the return journey would be a bit of a hassle because there were so many people waiting for the Marseille metro, but the staff were on hand to control the crowds and only let a certain number of people in at a time.
Traveling around the city during the Olympics wasn’t as hectic as we feared. Within half an hour we were back at our hotel and joked that we had seen three Olympic gates.
