The trip to Paris for the Coupe de France final is turning into a political fight before the match is even played. OGC Nice supporters facing Friday, May 22 at the Stade de France are finding train services full and airfares soaring, prompting Éric Ciotti to denounce what he called “une situation profondément choquante.”

France 3 reported that a round-trip flight from Nice to Paris costs at least 430 euros and can rise to 800 euros. Ciotti said the final is an event “qui appartient au patrimoine populaire de notre pays,” and he wrote on X that “L'explosion des coûts de transport pour la finale de la Coupe de France est inacceptable !” He also said he had written to the Minister of Transport to request immediate measures so that Niçois can attend without “se ruiner.”

The final brings OGC Nice and RC Lens to the national stadium on a Friday that falls inside a bridge weekend, a timing that is helping push up demand for both flights and trains. The concern is not just the price tag. It is whether supporters of a club involved in one of French football’s biggest domestic fixtures will be able to get there at all.

Philippe Tabarot pushed back, saying that “certains cherchent à instrumentaliser politiquement la question de l’accès à ce bel événement populaire” and insisting that “le gouvernement ne fixe les prix ni des billets d’avion ni des billets de train.” He said the prices were in line with a period of heavy demand linked to the long weekend. Tabarot, who is a senator for Alpes-Maritimes elected with the votes of local grand electors, became a target for Ciotti’s criticism on X, where the lawmaker called him “La définition d’un ministre qui ne sert à rien !” and accused him of “mépris, arrogance et incompétence.”

The clash leaves a straightforward question hanging over a match that should have been about football: whether the cheapest way for many Nice supporters to see their team in Paris will be to stay home and watch it from afar.