Achraf Hakimi to Stand Trial for Rape Allegations in France
Achraf Hakimi, captain of Morocco and a cornerstone of Paris St-Germain, will stand trial for rape in France after prosecutors confirmed an investigating judge has ordered the case to go before a criminal court.
The decision follows a preliminary investigation opened by the public prosecutor's office in Nanterre, a western suburb of Paris, in March 2023. A woman, then 24, accused Hakimi of raping her at his home in the French capital that year.
In February 2026, the investigating judge ruled that the case should proceed to trial. French media report that Hakimi, now 27, recently failed in an appeal to have the case thrown out. No date has yet been set for the start of proceedings.
Hakimi has consistently and firmly denied the allegations. On Friday, on the eve of Morocco’s second World Cup group game against Scotland in the United States (23:00 BST), he broke a long public silence with a pointed statement on social media.
"The justice system looked me in the eye and said, 'If you weren't famous, there would never have been a case,'" he wrote.
"I chose to remain silent for years. I believed that maintaining my dignity, being patient, and trusting in the justice system would allow the right decisions to be made.
"Today, a story that isn't mine is being told at the expense of my family, my life, and above all, the truth. I sometimes feel like I've become an easy target.
"I've been waiting for this trial since day one. And now I'm eagerly awaiting it. Finally, I'll be able to speak."
On the other side of the case, the plaintiff’s camp welcomed the judge’s decision to send the matter to trial. Her lawyer, Rachel-Flore Pardo, issued a statement framing the ruling as a crucial step after a long and bruising process.
"After more than three years of legal proceedings, and after my client was, in her view, defamed and dragged through the mud by Achraf Hakimi's defence, this decision brings her relief and hope," she said.
"Relief that she has been heard by the justice system and will have the right to a trial.
"Hope that this trial will help other women and further weaken the wall of denial and impunity surrounding sexual violence, including in the world of men's football."
The legal battle now runs in parallel with a World Cup campaign that places Hakimi on one of the sport’s grandest stages. Morocco are based in the United States for all three of their group fixtures, a logistical stroke of fortune given the potential travel complications that hang over the defender’s tournament.
The World Cup is being shared between the United States, Canada and Mexico up to the quarter-final stage, before remaining exclusively in the US. If Morocco progress to the knockouts and are scheduled to play in Canada or Mexico, Hakimi could face serious hurdles entering those countries while under indictment in France.
Canada’s government website states that officials can deny entry to any person who has "committed or been convicted of a crime". That stance has already had a direct impact on another high-profile international.
Last week, Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey missed his country’s World Cup opener against Panama after being refused entry to Canada, one of the tournament’s co-hosts. Partey, 32, has pleaded not guilty to seven charges of rape and one count of sexual assault relating to allegations made by four women between 2020 and 2022. He is due to stand trial next year.
Hakimi’s situation now sits at the same uneasy intersection of elite football and serious criminal allegations, a space the sport is being forced to confront more frequently.
On the pitch, his status is undisputed. Since making his Morocco debut in 2016 at just 17, he has amassed 97 caps and grown into the face of a golden generation. He was central to the Morocco side that stunned the world in 2022, becoming the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final.
At club level, Hakimi joined Paris St-Germain from Inter Milan in 2021 and has been a key figure in a trophy-laden era, collecting 13 pieces of silverware, including back-to-back Champions League titles over the past two seasons.
Now, as he prepares to lead his country out again, his career moves on two starkly different tracks: a World Cup campaign in the United States and a looming trial in France that could define how he is remembered far beyond the game.
