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The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed to Reuters that the inquiry concerns the overlap between Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s positions as president of Paris Saint-Germain, chairman of the board of beIN Media Group and a member of the governing bodies of France’s professional football league.
The opening of the inquiry does not indicate that Al-Khelaifi committed an offence. Prosecutors are examining the circumstances of negotiations over Ligue 1 television broadcasting rights in 2024 and whether a possible conflict of interest existed.
Inquiry focuses on 2024 agreement
The investigation relates to July 2024, when French football was seeking a new broadcasting deal for Ligue 1. After a tender for the rights failed to produce the expected result, beIN Sports offered $115 million to broadcast one Ligue 1 match each week.
The Professional Football League (LFP) accepted the offer as part of a broadcasting agreement that took effect for the 2024-2025 season. According to L’Équipe, anti-corruption organization Anticor alerted prosecutors to concerns over Al-Khelaifi’s involvement in discussions about the offer.
The organization alleged that Al-Khelaifi’s positions in French football and at beIN created a potential conflict of interest. It also said he had encouraged other club presidents to support the offer. The inquiry was subsequently referred to France’s anti-corruption and financial police authorities.
Al-Khelaifi and beIN deny allegations
Renaud Semerdjian, a lawyer for Nasser Al-Khelaifi, called the allegations unfounded. He told AFP that the claims against his client had neither a legal nor factual basis.
According to the lawyer, Al-Khelaifi had “always acted independently, impartially and objectively.” A source familiar with the matter told Reuters that Al-Khelaifi had stayed away from almost all of the LFP’s board meetings over the past year and had not attended meetings at which matters concerning beIN were discussed.
beIN has also sought to distinguish Al-Khelaifi’s role as chairman from the company’s day-to-day management. In a letter sent to the French Football Federation’s National Council for Ethics and Deontology in February, the company said he had no operational or executive authority at beIN Media Group or beIN Sports France. Those responsibilities, it said, lay with the group’s chief executive, Youssef Al-Obaidly.
Al-Khelaifi’s multiple roles in football
Nasser Al-Khelaifi has led Paris Saint-Germain since Qatar Sports Investments acquired the club in 2011. He is also chairman of beIN Media Group and has participated in the governance of France’s professional football league.
Al-Khelaifi’s various roles have previously caused disagreements among French club executives. The disputes have mainly concerned the financing and management of Ligue 1.
Following the failed 2024 tender, clubs and the LFP considered alternative broadcasting models. The result was a system involving several broadcasters and the league’s own Ligue 1+ platform.
The current inquiry remains at a preliminary stage. Prosecutors will seek to determine whether Al-Khelaifi breached France’s conflict-of-interest rules during negotiations over Ligue 1 broadcasting rights in 2024.
