PSG suspected of bribing Messi to win Ballon d'Or

According to Le Monde , PSG officials tried to influence Pascal Ferre, former editor-in-chief of France Football magazine, the organization that organizes the voting and awarding of the Ballon d'Or.

PSG is accused of trying to bribe Mr. Ferre in various ways between 2020 and 2021. President Nasser Al-Khelaifi wanted to promote PSG's reputation through Messi winning the 2021 Ballon d'Or.

Messi won his 7th Ballon d'Or in 2021.

Mr. Ferre was even exposed for deleting an article criticizing Chairman Al-Khelaifi and replacing it with another article praising the Qatari billionaire.

According to the French newspaper, the investigation also focuses on Jean-Martial Ribes, former communications director of PSG from 2017 to 2022. He is also involved in a series of corruption allegations during his time at Parc des Princes.

A report by the Inspector General of the French National Police in November 2023 said: "Ribes provided PSG tickets to numerous journalists, artists, politicians , officials, cabinet members, and even the president."

PSG's efforts have paid off, as they have the first player in history to win the France Football Ballon d'Or in 2021 - Lionel Messi.

The club then immediately held a grand celebration for the Argentine superstar, alongside EURO champion Gianluigi Donnarumma. Two years later, Messi continued to become the best player in the world for the 8th time thanks to his top performance at the Qatar World Cup.

Neither PSG nor Messi have commented on the scandal. Messi is currently on vacation with his family. The Argentine superstar will return to training in the coming weeks and will be reunited with Cristiano Ronaldo when Inter Miami play a friendly against Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia on February 2.

Minh Tu

Source: https://vtc.vn/psg-bi-nghi-hoi-lo-de-messi-gianh-qua-bong-vang-ar845964.html