Swiss courts to start trying al-Khelaifi on corruption charges

Amira al-Sharif

Chairman of the French sports club, Paris Saint-Germain, and the Qatari sports channels, beIN Sports, Nasser al-Khelaifi, will stand trial in Switzerland on Monday, according to media reports.

Al-Khelaifi’s long-awaited trial comes against the background of corruption charges in connection with the international governing body of football, FIFA, and the broadcast rights of the FIFA World Cups 2026 and 2030.

He is reported to have used a villa in the Italian Mediterranean island of Sardinia to achieve his goals in this regard.

Al-Khelaifi is also accused of inciting Jérôme Valcke, the former secretary-general of FIFA, into corruption and mismanagement.

The Swiss prosecution accuses al-Khelaifi of allowing Valcke to use the villa for free, even as he should have paid him 1.8 million Euros in rent.

Valcke used the villa for three years, a time when he oversaw the dubious broadcast deals of the international football governing body. He is reported to have allowed beIN Sports to have the broadcast rights of the World Cups 2026 and 2030 in the Middle East.

In February this year, the prosecution accused Valcke of mismanagement, the fabrication of documents and the lack of integrity.

Valcke, 59, is scheduled to stand trial at the Federal Swiss Court next week. Hearings are expected to last for eight days. He and al-Khelaifi deny the charges leveled against them.

The British newspaper, The Times, revealed in February this year that al-Khelaifi had agreed to pay money for FIFA, around 1 million Swiss francs, in return for dropping bribery charges against him.

The Qatar Sports Investments, a closed shareholding organization founded in 2005, is located at the center of the Qatari capital Doha.

The organization is viewed as the world’s largest spoiling the international sports scene.

It works to better the image of the Qatari regime and also win broadcast rights by hook and by crook.