A French appeals court on Friday confirmed that Moroccan football star Achraf Hakimi will face trial for the alleged rape of a woman in 2023, which the Paris Saint-Germain defender denies.
In February 2023, a woman then aged 24 told police in the Val-de-Marne region southeast of Paris that Hakimi had raped her. The PSG right-back and captain of the Moroccan national team, whose second match of the 2026 World Cup kicks off on Friday against Scotland, has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
Shortly after the Versailles Court of Appeal delivered its ruling, Hakimi wrote on X that he had been “waiting for this trial since day one.” “At last, I’ll be able to speak,” he said. “Justice looked me in the eyes and said to me: If you weren’t famous, there never would have been a case. I chose to remain silent for years. I thought that staying dignified, being patient, and trusting the justice system would allow the right decisions to be made. Today, a story that is not mine is being told at the expense of my family, my life, and above all, the truth. Sometimes I feel like I’ve become an easy target,” he added on X.
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A date has not been announced for the start of the trial at the criminal court in the Hauts-de-Seine department. “This confirmation was expected. Nothing here says that he is guilty of anything, he remains steadfast in his defence,” Hakimi’s lawyer Fanny Colin said.
The plaintiff’s lawyer Rachel-Flore Pardo said the decision brought her client “relief and hope”. The plaintiff said she met Hakimi in January 2023 on Instagram and went to his home in a taxi ordered by the player, a police source said at the time.
She claimed that the player kissed her, touched her without her consent and then raped her. She said she managed to push him away and text a friend, who came to pick her up.
Speaking to the press for the first time in a Mediapart article published Thursday, the woman, using the pseudonym Jeanne, said she wanted a trial “to defend myself, to be heard”. “I want to explain myself. I want people to believe me,” she added.
Source: Khaleej Times