Achraf Hakimi, the Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco footballer, will go on trial for rape charges in France after the country’s highest court upheld the decision to refer the case for a criminal trial. Hakimi had appealed the decision to refer him to a criminal court and lost his legal challenge after the Court of Cassation rejected Hakimi’s appeal against the decision.
The decision was confirmed on Wednesday, with a judicial source saying that the French court had upheld the earlier ruling. Hakimi, 27, has repeatedly denied the claim. The decision of the court is about whether a case should proceed to trial and does not constitute a finding of guilt.
The case dates back to the incident reported in 2023. Hakimi was ordered to stand trial in February in the Hauts-de-Seine department based on that order, but he challenged that decision to prevent the case from going to a full criminal trial.
Hakimi’s legal team later appealed to the Versailles Court of Appeal. On June 19, the appeals court confirmed that he should stand trial over the allegation. With that ruling, Hakimi took his case to France’s Court of Cassation, the country’s highest court in civil and criminal matters.
The Court of Cassation represented Hakimi’s final legal avenue against the decision to send him to trial. Its latest ruling means that the earlier judicial decision remains in place and the case can proceed before the criminal court. The timing and further procedural details of the trial will depend on the French judicial authorities.
Hakimi has denied the accusation. His lawyers have remained adamant in their position during the proceedings, while the French judicial process has continued through multiple phases of review. The accusations are still allegations until they are established through the judicial process now that the case is being brought to trial.
The development has come as Hakimi continues his football career with PSG and is representing Morocco internationally. The right-back has developed into one of the most prominent Moroccan football players of his generation and has remained an important figure for both club and country.
The court decision for PSG is a matter of course that is a reminder that Hakimi is still part of the French club. Through the legal process, the player has remained around the Paris club. PSG has also backed Hakimi and has always stressed the presumption of innocence.
Hakimi was in the headlines in France and abroad with his fame as a footballer. But the court's decision is procedural, not a verdict on the allegation itself. A trial would be the place to examine evidence and arguments from both sides.
Hakimi’s appeal to the Court of Cassation was about the decision to send him to trial instead of a clear determination on the allegations of a crime. With that appeal rejected, the legal process now moves to the criminal court stage.
The footballer’s case is now entering a new stage after more than three years in the courts. Hakimi has denied the charge and the French courts have now confirmed that the case should proceed to trial. There are more developments to come as the French judicial authorities decide what is next.
