Achraf Hakimi to Stand Trial for Rape Charges in France
Achraf Hakimi will face trial for rape in France after a court on Friday confirmed the 27-year-old Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco star must answer the charges before a criminal court.
The decision marks a decisive turn in a case that has hovered over one of world football’s most high-profile full-backs for more than a year. Hakimi has repeatedly denied the allegations and reacted by saying he is “eagerly awaiting” the chance to defend himself in court.
In a post on X, he again rejected the accusations and said the trial would finally allow him “to speak”.
The case dates back to February 2023, when a woman, then 24, told police in the Val-de-Marne region, southeast of Paris, that Hakimi had raped her. The complaint led to a formal investigation and, ultimately, to Friday’s confirmation that the matter will go before the criminal court in the Hauts-de-Seine department. No trial date has yet been set.
Hakimi, a key figure for PSG and captain of the Moroccan national team, has maintained the same line from the outset: he says he is innocent and contests the woman’s account of what happened.
His lawyer, Fanny Colin, underlined that the ruling does not prejudge the outcome. “This confirmation was expected. Nothing here says that he is guilty of anything, he remains steadfast in his defence,” she said.
On the other side, the decision landed with a very different emotional weight. The plaintiff’s lawyer, Rachel-Flore Pardo, said the court’s move brought her client “relief and hope”, a sign that her complaint will now be tested in full at trial.
According to a police source at the time of the initial complaint, the woman said she first made contact with Hakimi in January 2023 on Instagram. She then went to his home in a taxi that she says was ordered by the player.
Once there, she told investigators, Hakimi 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 collect her.
Until this week, the woman had stayed out of the spotlight. That changed with an interview published Thursday by Mediapart, in which she spoke to the press for the first time under the pseudonym “Jeanne”.
She made clear why she wants the case to go to court. She said she was seeking a trial “to defend myself, to be heard”.
“I want to explain myself. I want people to believe me,” she added.
While Morocco prepare for their second World Cup match on Friday against Scotland, their captain’s future will now be shaped not only by performances on the pitch, but by the verdict of a French criminal court.
