The procedure initiated by the European body targets the Parisian club, its president Nasser Al-Khelaïfi and its sporting director Leonardo, and will first have to establish the facts, according to a spokesperson interviewed by AFP.

The investigations are based on article 11 of the disciplinary regulations of the body, which concerns the "general principles of conduct", as well as on article 15, which sanctions the "incorrect behavior of players and officials " .

The two provisions are aimed in particular at non-compliance with "instructions given by the referee" or more broadly "unsportsmanlike behavior", and provide for sanctions that can combine suspension matches and a fine.

Spanish media reported Thursday that Al-Khelaïfi and Leonardo had tried to protest to the referees after the sinking against Real Madrid (3-1), furious at the validation of the first of three goals from Karim Benzema.

The joy of Real Madrid's French striker Karim Benzema after his goal scored against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League round of 16 second leg on March 9, 2022 at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium JAVIER SORIANO AFP

"Aggressive behaviour"

The Parisian club believes that the center forward of Real committed a foul on the Parisian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma before scoring, without the referees whistling this contact or verifying the images to the VAR.

Argentinian coach of Paris Saint-Germain Mauricio Pochettino, during the Champions League round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid, March 9, 2022 at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium JAVIER SORIANO AFP

"We have a feeling of great injustice because of this clear foul by Benzema on Donnarumma," PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino reacted after the match.

According to the report of the meeting broadcast by the Spanish media, the two Parisian leaders "showed aggressive behavior and tried to enter the referees' locker room".

“When the referee asked them to leave, they blocked the door, and the president intentionally hit the flag of one of the assistants, ending up breaking it,” said the referee of the game, the Dutchman Danny Makkelie, according to the Spanish press.

Brazilian captain and defender of Paris Saint-Germain Marquinhos tries to chat with Dutch referee Danny Makkelie, during the Champions League round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid, March 9, 2022 at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium JAVIER SORIANO AFP

According to the sports dailies Marca and As, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi and Leonardo even entered the dressing room of the Real Madrid delegate (responsible among other things for announcing the changes to the referee during the match) Megía Dávila, while they sought that of the arbiters.

The shadow of the Super League

A version disputed by the Parisian club: according to a source interviewed by AFP, Leonardo and President Al-Khelaïfi wanted to speak to the referee and insisted when he refused.

The tone rose when they realized that the scene was being filmed using a cell phone and they asked the owner to stop.

The sports daily As indicates for its part that after this altercation, "PSG sent a club employee to apologize to the referees and to Real Madrid".

A strong man of world football with multiple hats, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi is not only the boss of PSG: he also chairs the beIN Media group, a major player in the TV rights market, the powerful European Club Association (ECA), and sits on the UEFA Executive Committee.

Qatari president of Paris Saint-Germain Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, during a break during the UEFA Congress, February 7, 2019 in Rome Andreas SOLARO AFP / Archives

By opposing the project of a private and semi-closed European competition in the spring of 2021, the Qatari emerged strengthened from the Super League crisis.

“With you, we will save football,” UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin had even publicly launched to him.

The soap opera of the Super League had in passing greatly strained relations between the Parisian club and Real Madrid, whose president Florentino Perez remains the first promoter of this dissident tournament.

© 2022 AFP