A French appeals court confirmed on Friday that Moroccan football player Achraf Hakimi will go to trial for an alleged rape case from 2023. The defender for Paris Saint-Germain denies the claims.
In February 2023, a 24-year-old woman reported to police in Val-de-Marne, southeast of Paris, that Hakimi raped her.
Hakimi, who is also the captain of the Moroccan national team, is preparing for his second match in the 2026 World Cup. He has always denied any wrongdoing.
After the Versailles Court of Appeal announced its decision, Hakimi shared on X that he has been “waiting for this trial since day one.”
“At last, I’ll be able to speak,” he said.
The court has not set a date for the trial in the Hauts-de-Seine department.
Hakimi’s lawyer, Fanny Colin, stated, “This confirmation was expected. Nothing here says that he is guilty of anything; he remains steadfast in his defence.”
On the other side, the lawyer for the woman, Rachel-Flore Pardo, expressed that the decision gave her client “relief and hope.”
The woman said she met Hakimi on Instagram in January 2023. According to police, he sent a taxi to pick her up and take her to his home.
She claimed that once there, he kissed her, touched her without her consent, and then raped her. She said she managed to push him away and text a friend for help.
In her first media interview, published by Mediapart on Thursday, the woman, who is using the name 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.
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