First tobacco-free stadium in Paris

After having multiplied the number of smoke-free areas around schools, the City of Paris has just presented its first smoke-free stadium. An initiative that recalls the need to denormalize smoking, both among children and athletes.

The smoke-free stadium is part of the line of smoke-free spaces, which are outdoor public spaces where the smoking ban is extended. The aim of this policy is to denormalize tobacco by removing it from public spaces, and in particular from the gaze of children. Initially promoted by the League against cancer[1], smoke-free areas were first set up around primary schools (nurseries, elementary schools), where they are tending to become more systematic. An initiative which, in Paris, could soon be extended to middle schools.

Some beaches, but also parks and gardens and other urban places have also been able to become smoke-free spaces. In Paris, the first smoke-free spaces appeared in 2015, around children's playgrounds in public gardens. This measure was then extended to establish smoke-free gardens from June 2019, of which there are now more than 70 in the city.[2].

Local initiatives

While some sports facilities have already been banned from smoking, it is now the turn of municipal stadiums. In Paris, a first smoke-free stadium has just been labeled by the town hall of the 13th arrondissement^th district, with others soon to follow[3]. The goal of denormalization here is to separate the world of sport from that of tobacco, not only to protect children from starting to smoke, but also to keep athletes away from tobacco. The city wants to associate sport with health, in view of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Smoke-free areas are local initiatives that are adopted at the municipal level. Other French cities, such as Strasbourg or Saint Pierre des Corps, have however preceded Paris, and other European countries, first Belgium, have already paved the way for smoke-free stadiums. This practice is thus set to become more widespread, particularly in the Netherlands, where the dynamics of smoke-free spaces has recently seen a flightAs the ban on smoking in enclosed public places has shown, smoke-free places and spaces seem to respond to a deep aspiration of the population, whether people are non-smokers or smokers.

Professional sport also in this movement

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for its part published Guidelines for smoke-free stadiums in 2016, which also include the issue of electronic cigarettes and rule out the possibility of areas designed for smokers.[4]. In France, this responsibility falls to stadium managers, as stadiums are not entirely enclosed spaces. In Paris, the Parc des Princes has been entirely smoke-free since 2013. As the 2023 Rugby World Cup approaches, the message of smoke-free stadiums needs to be spread more than ever.

Keywords: Smoke-free stadium, smoke-free spaces, City of Paris

M.F.