French policeman left in a coma by German hooligans at 1998 World Cup to attend Germany vs. France

BERLIN (AP) — The French policeman who was left in a coma following a brutal beating from German soccer hooligans during the 1998 World Cup is to attend a friendly between the two nations in September. The German soccer federation says Daniel Nivel has accepted an invitation to attend the match in Dortmund on Sept. 12. It’s almost 25 years to the day since a group of 30 German hooligans beat Nivel in Lens. He was left in a coma for six weeks and with other injuries from which he never recovered. German chancellor Helmut Kohl called it “a national scandal” at the time.