PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi under investigation in France for conflict of interest

PARIS – Paris Saint-Germain’s Qatari President Nasser Al-Khelaifi is under investigation in France on conflict-of-interest suspicions, prosecutors in the French capital said on Sept 20.

The preliminary probe is linked to his twin stewardship of the Champions League title holders and the beIN Media Group and involves a meeting on broadcasting rights with the football league’s representatives in July 2024, the prosecutor’s office said, confirming a report in L’Equipe sports newspaper.

The PSG chief, who has led the French Ligue 1 champions since its 2011 takeover by Qatar Sports Investments with the dream of making the team Europe’s best, has faced several legal cases in recent years.

He has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and his lawyer insisted to AFP that his client had “always acted in an independent, impartial and objective manner”.

The latest investigation into Al-Khelaifi was launched in April after a tip-off from the anti-graft Anticor association, with proceedings entrusted to the anti-corruption and finance police.

He was likewise charged in February 2025 with complicity in abuse of power concerning shareholder voting at a company, a source close to the case said on Sept 17.

Previous charges against Al-Khelaifi for alleged corruption over Qatar’s bids for the 2017 and 2019 World Athletics Championships were definitively annulled in mid-February 2023 by France’s Court of Cassation, which ruled the French justice system did not have the right to prosecute him. AFP