Alcohol ban for French Open fans after Goffin complaint

French Open fans won't be able to drink alcohol at courtside after one spat gum at David Goffin. (AP PHOTO)

Spectators at the French Open have been banned from drinking alcohol in the stands at Roland Garros following Belgian star David Goffin's complaint that a fan spat chewing gum at him.

Organisers have acted quickly following Goffin's complaint about the "disrespectful" crowd on Court 14 when he beat home favourite Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in five sets on Tuesday.

Spectators will not be allowed to drink in their seats any more, with tournament director Amelie Mauresmo also saying on Thursday that security had been tightened and umpires had been told to be stricter with unruly crowd behaviour.

"Alcohol was until now authorised in the stands. Now it's over," said Mauresmo.

Goffin not happy
David Goffin had complained that a spectator had spat chewing gum at him.

"We are happy people are very enthusiastic about watching tennis and being part of the matches, showing feeling and emotions, but there are definitely steps which shouldn't go further. A few things have needed to be put in place.

"The umpires are really going to be even more strict to further respect to the players and respect the game.

"This is something that we're not going to tolerate, to overstep these two things. That's for sure. So umpires have quite an important role in this matter.

"And definitely in terms of security, we're going to try to see which people is maybe making trouble, because I think it's a few individuals at some point that are overstepping."

Mauresmo said that authorities were still trying to identify the person who spat gum at Goffin.

The Belgian, who was knocked out by Alexander Zverev on Thursday, welcomed the alcohol ban, saying: "Hopefully it's good what Amelie did because if they continue like that, you never know.

"Maybe the spectators said 'OK, it was fine this year. Maybe we go for it for more next year and then the year after is going even for more'.

"You never know what they're going to do, if they're going to come with firecrackers."

The home fans' behaviour has been a hot topic at Roland Garros this year with women's champion Iga Swiatek even offering a gentle plea to the fans for shouting out during rallies in her epic win over Naomi Osaka on Wednesday. 

Daniil Medvedev smiled about the difficulty of playing French players in front of their home fans but reckoned it was no worse than playing against an Aussie in Melbourne.

"I think playing French (players) in Roland Garros is not easy, that's for sure. A lot of players experience it," he said on Thursday.

"I would say that in US Open and Wimbledon is not the same. Australia can be tough. I played Thanasi (Kokkinakis) once there (in 2018) on the small court. It was, whew, brutal!

"It's good to have energy between points, but then when you're ready to serve, it's okay, let's finish it and let's play tennis."

License this article

What is AAPNews?

For the first time, Australian Associated Press is delivering news straight to the consumer.

No ads. No spin. News straight-up.

Not only do you get to enjoy high-quality news delivered straight to your desktop or device, you do so in the knowledge you are supporting media diversity in Australia.

AAP Is Australia’s only independent newswire service, free from political and commercial influence, producing fact-based public interest journalism across a range of topics including politics, courts, sport, finance and entertainment.

What is AAPNews?
The Morning Wire

Wake up to AAPNews’ morning news bulletin delivered straight to your inbox or mobile device, bringing you up to speed with all that has happened overnight at home and abroad, as well as setting you up what the day has in store.

AAPNews Morning Wire
AAPNews Breaking News
Breaking News

Be the first to know when major breaking news happens.


Notifications will be sent to your device whenever a big story breaks, ensuring you are never in the dark when the talking points happen.

Focused Content

Enjoy the best of AAP’s specialised Topics in Focus. AAP has reporters dedicated to bringing you hard news and feature content across a range of specialised topics including Environment, Agriculture, Future Economies, Arts and Refugee Issues.

AAPNews Focussed Content
Subscription Plans

Choose the plan that best fits your needs. AAPNews offers two basic subscriptions, all billed monthly.

Once you sign up, you will have seven days to test out the service before being billed.

AAPNews Full Access Plan
Full Access
AU$10
  • Enjoy all that AAPNews has to offer
  • Access to breaking news notifications and bulletins
  • Includes access to all AAPNews’ specialised topics
Join Now
AAPNews Student Access Plan
Student Access
AU$5
  • Gain access via a verified student email account
  • Enjoy all the benefits of the ‘Full Access’ plan at a reduced rate
  • Subscription renews each month
Join Now
AAPNews Annual Access Plan
Annual Access
AU$99
  • All the benefits of the 'Full Access' subscription at a discounted rate
  • Subscription automatically renews after 12 months
Join Now

AAPNews also offers enterprise deals for businesses so you can provide an AAPNews account for your team, organisation or customers. Click here to contact AAP to sign-up your business today.

SEVEN DAYS FREE
Download the app
Download AAPNews on the App StoreDownload AAPNews on the Google Play Store