'The Champs Elysee is a battlefield': Hundreds of football fans from David Beckham's Paris St Germain club turn victory into riots on French streets Thousands lined streets around Arc de Triomphe as PSG held victory parade Thugs started throwing stones and flares and looting shops Police said that officers had been charged by hundreds of thugs By Peter Allen Hundreds of Paris St Germain football fans were involved in fights with the police tonight as a victory celebration turned into a riot. David Beckham's side was showing off its new Championship trophy close to the Champs Elysee when thugs started throwing stones and flares. CRS riot police responded with tear gas, as shops were looted and cars burnt out in one of the most upmarket areas of the city. Tension: David Beckham¿s side was showing off its new Championship trophy close to the Champs Elysee when thugs started throwing stones and flares Cut short: The celebrations were cut short on Monday after clashes between spectators and police in the west of the French capital It began well, with people celebrating on the Champs Elysee avenue in Paris after French L1 football club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) defeated Lyon to win the French title. Supporters were in high spirits after PSG won their first French title since 1994 with a 1-0 success at Lyon Revelry: Fans celebrate down the Champs Elysees avenue as darkness falls in the city "It's absolute pandemonium," said eye-witness Paul Reeve. There are gangs of hooligans everywhere, targeting whatever they can. This isn't about football - it's about mob violence. "The Champs Elysee is a battlefield," said a photographer who captured images of the violence. There are youths smashing shop windows and stealing everything they can. They are also attacking cars and motorbikes. Riots: Fans gesture as they face riot Gendarmes in front of the Eiffel Tower during clashes between fans and police as several thousand supporters celebrated with Paris Saint-Germain soccer players who received the French Championship trophy in Paris Turning sour: CRS riot police responded with tear gas, as shops were looted and cars burnt out in one of the most upmarket areas of the city Intervention: A fan is detained by a riot Gendarme in front of the Eiffel Tower after clashes Victory parade: Thousands of Parisians had lined streets around the Arc de Triomphe as the PSG players took part in a victory parade towards the Trocadero monument, opposite the Eiffel Tower Thousands of Parisians had lined streets around the Arc de Triomphe as the PSG players took part in a victory parade towards the Trocadero monument, opposite the Eiffel Tower. They were able to lift the trophy for a few minutes before the fighting broke out, and the entire event was cancelled, along with a planned cruise down the Seine. The famous Fouquet's restaurant on the Champs Elysee closed for the evening, along with designer shops like Louis Vuitton. Security guards could be seen surrounding shop windows and fighting youths who were trying to break in. Paris Saint-Germain supporters clash with French riot police during a ceremony at Trocadero People run away from tear gas which French riot police released when crowds overwhelmed them Security guards could be seen surrounding shop windows and fighting youths who were trying to break in (not pictured) Paris Saint-Germain's players parade on a double decker bus on May 13, 2013 in Paris, one day they secured the title "We were overwhelmed," said a spokesman for the Alliance police union, saying that officers had been charged by hundreds of thugs. PSG is now ultimately owned by the massively wealthy gulf state of Qatar and is now one of the richest clubs in the world. Its riches helped it to secure its first Championship trophy in 19 years on Monday night, prompting celebrations by star players including Beckham, the former England captain who was signed in February. But PSG has never been able to shake off its hooligan following. Many of them come from housing estates bordering Paris.