A court proceeding was opened on Tuesday (24) for bullying after a complaint filed by Kylian Mbappé against PSG (Paris Saint-Germain), his former club.
Target: The practice of ‘Loft’, already denounced by other players. This practice, recurring in soccer clubs, consists of removing players from the cast and is already the subject of several investigations in Paris.
Two instruction judges were assigned, needed a source close to the case to investigate the accusations of the player, who now operates in Real Madrid.
Mbappé, captain of the French team, filed a complaint in Paris on May 16 for bullying and attempted extortion of his signature, specifically denouncing his inclusion in the summer of 2023 in PSG’s Loft.
The procedure was attributed to the Delinquency Repression Brigade against People (BRDP), which had already been designated to deal with the complaint of player Kheira Hamraoui against PSG.
In this case, the footballer, who suffered a serious assault on the street and now plays in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Shabab, says the club marginalized her after her recovery to encourage her to leave, according to a source close to the case.
PSG is not the only club pointed out by these accusations. The UFNP union accused of bullying and extortion several clubs that deliberately dismissed players with the goal, according to the union, of “maximizing the price of transfers”.
An investigation was then opened, directed by the prosecution. In early June, UNFP lawyers Léon Del Forno and Julia Minkowski filed a new complaint to get an investigation judge.
What do players fail in their clubs? Specifically, during the transfer period, regulated by the collective agreement of professional players, clubs can put the athletes they want to dispose of in a ‘loft’, a kind of isolation: without training with the professional group or participating in games.
According to article 507 of the French football letter, which acts as a collective agreement, clubs have certain obligations with these players: allow them to access locker rooms, training facilities, eventually different but equivalent quality “.
They should also provide them with the “expected equipment for all professional players” and propose training schedules “compatible with the other conditions of preparation and training of the main group of professionals, as well as respectful health of players.”
This ‘Loft’ is expected to end on September 1, the closing date of the transfer market.
However, the practice faces numerous abuses, according to its detractors. This isolation, considered abusive, pushes players to extend their contract in the club or, on the contrary, accept a transfer – with an economic benefit to your home club – or even terminate your contract.
Consulted on Thursday, Penalist lawyer of Kylian Mbappé, Pierre-Olivier Sur, declined to comment on the opening of the court procedure. The player’s surroundings also did not comment or PSG.
In addition to the criminal case, Mbappé is also in financial dispute with PSG. His lawyers held at the beginning of April a press conference, the first since the conflict began, to “pass the attack” after a long impasse in the face of sports entities, such as the French Football Federation and the Professional Football League.
In short, Mbappé, who was free to Real Madrid a year ago, complains 55 million euros ($ 354 million) in bonuses and unpaid salaries. A “fantasy narrative,” according to PSG.
