Paris St-Germain (PSG) have formally requested to postpone their Ligue 1 clash against title rivals Lens, a fixture scheduled to fall between the two legs of their Champions League quarter-final against Liverpool.
The Ligue 1 encounter is set for Saturday, 11 April, just three days after PSG host Liverpool and three days before the second leg at Anfield. Meanwhile, Liverpool will host Fulham in the Premier League on the same day.
Lens, who are chasing their first league title since 1998, expressed strong opposition to the postponement. In an official statement, the club criticized the idea of domestic fixtures being adjusted to accommodate European schedules, saying the league risks being “gradually relegated to the status of an adjustment variable at the whim of the European imperatives of some.”
“Beyond this specific case, the question raised is a more fundamental one: that of the respect due to the competition itself,” the statement read. “One is entitled to wonder when, on its own soil, the league sometimes seems to be relegated to second place behind other ambitions, however legitimate they may be.”
A PSG spokesperson responded by emphasizing that similar rescheduling has been done in the past to support French clubs competing in Europe. They added that these adjustments “benefit French football as a whole,” highlighting France’s current 6th place in the UEFA coefficient rankings for the 2025–26 season.
Currently, Lens sit second in Ligue 1, trailing leaders PSG by just one point. Lens head coach Pierre Sage stated after Sunday’s 5-1 win over Angers that his team does not support a postponement.
This is not the first time PSG have requested fixture adjustments. During their previous Champions League tie against Chelsea, PSG’s league game against Nantes was postponed to give them rest between the European legs. The Parisians went on to win 8-2 on aggregate.
The Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) will have the final say on the matter and confirmed that they aim to assist French clubs participating in European competitions. Strasbourg has also requested to postpone their league game at Brest, scheduled between their Conference League matches against Mainz.
