Moroccan footballer Achraf Hakimi, whose referral to trial on rape charges was upheld by an appeal court, has filed an appeal with France’s Court of Cassation, a source close to the case told AFP on Friday.
The Court of Appeal confirmed on June 19 that the Moroccan international and the Paris Saint-Germain player will face criminal charges for allegedly raping a woman in 2023 – a charge he has repeatedly denied.
The decision was made while Hakimi, 27, was captaining Morocco at the 2026 World Cup.
Shortly after the Court of Appeal of Versailles made its decision, Hakimi wrote on X that he had been “awaiting this process since day one.”
His lawyer declined to comment on the appeal to the Court of Cassation, the French judiciary’s highest civil and criminal court.
Morocco Achraf Hakimi attended the World Cup.IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Brett Davis
In February 2023, a 24-year-old woman told police in the Val-de-Marne region, southeast of Paris, that Hakimi had raped her.
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 alleged that the player kissed her, touched her without her consent, and then raped her.
“Every decision rendered in this case was in favor of the plaintiff. She will fight to the very end to achieve justice.” This was announced by the plaintiff’s lawyer Rachel-Flora Pardo.