Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi got an earful from his own supporters during the World Cup group stage. The reason isn’t soccer-related.
Hours before Morocco kicked off against Scotland on June 19, a French appeals court upheld a decision that Hakimi will stand trial on rape charges. The PSG defender had appealed a February ruling by an investigative judge, which followed a recommendation from public prosecutors. That appeal failed.
Hakimi denies the allegations. But the timing was brutal. The court’s decision landed just before Morocco’s 1-0 win over Scotland in Group C. And the crowd let him have it. Every time Hakimi touched the ball, the boos rang out. Loud and clear.
The charges and the timeline
The 24-year-old woman who filed the complaint says Hakimi raped her at his home in a Paris suburb in March 2023. That’s when preliminary charges were filed. Now, more than three years later, the case is heading to trial. No trial date has been set.
Rachel-Flore Pardo, the lawyer for the accuser, said the decision brings her client relief. “Relief that she has been heard by the justice system and will have her case heard at trial,” Pardo said in a statement. She also said she hopes the trial will help other women and “weaken the fortress of denial and impunity surrounding sexual violence, including within the world of men’s football.”
Hakimi speaks out
Hakimi posted on X Friday that he believes his fame is working against him. “Justice looked me in the eye and told me: ‘If you were not famous, there would never have been a case,’” he wrote. He said he stayed silent for years, thinking patience and trust in the system would lead to the right outcome. He called the case damaging to his family and “above all, to the truth.”
“I have been waiting for this trial since the first day. And I am now waiting for it impatiently,” he added. “Finally, I will be able to speak.”
His lawyer, Fanny Colin, argued that the investigation turned up a bunch of evidence that should have killed the case. “The multitude of exculpatory elements uncovered during the investigation and judicial inquiry would, in any other case, have led to the dismissal of the proceedings,” Colin said. She also criticized the accuser’s “contradictions and false statements” and her “obstruction of the search for the truth.”
Morocco drew 1-1 with Brazil in their opener and beat Scotland 1-0. It was Hakimi’s second game of the tournament when the booing started.
Leave a Comment