Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi to face rape trial, French court rules

The captain of Morocco's national football team, Achraf Hakimi, will stand trial for rape, a French court of appeals confirmed on Friday.

The Paris Saint-Germain defender strongly denies the allegations. After the ruling was announced, he posted on social media that he has been "waiting for this trial since day one. At last I'll be able to speak."

A date has not been announced for the start of the trial at the criminal court in the Hauts-de-Seine department.

The player is charged with raping a woman at his home outside Paris in 2023. The plaintif alleges that Hakimi kissed her and touched her without her consent and then raped her.

"This confirmation was expected. Nothing here says that he is guilty of anything, he remains steadfast in his defence," Hakimi's lawyer Fanny Colin said.

The plaintiff's lawyer Rachel-Flore Pardo said the decision brought her client "relief and hope."

The plaintiff said she met Hakimi in January 2023 on Instagram and went to his home in a taxi ordered by the player, a police source said at the time.

She claimed that the player 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 pick her up.

Speaking to the media for the first time on Thursday, the plaintiff said she wanted a trial "to defend herself, to be heard. I want to explain myself. I want people to believe me."

Hakimi is currently in the United States where Morocco faces Scotland on Friday in their second match of the 2026 World Cup.