2022 World Cup: Michel Platini denies hiring his son in exchange for his vote for Qatar (Archives) -

Anthony Anex / AP / SIPA

Michel Platini denies any arrangement that would have led to the hiring of his son by a Qatari company in exchange for his vote for Qatar for the attribution of the World Cup-2022, said his entourage on Monday, reacting to the publication by Mediapart of a handwritten note.

According to the investigative media, this note dated April 28, 2011 was seized during a search in the investigation into the designation of the host country of the FIFA World Cup in 2022.

A salary for Laurent Platini

This document contains information relating to the sale of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to the sovereign wealth fund Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), with a planned distribution of capital, as well as an amount relating to a salary to be paid to Laurent Platini.

“70/30% - Laurent Platini back of salary (EUR 150,000 to be verified !!)”, we can read on this note.

It was seized during a search of the premises of the American investment fund Colony Capital, in Paris in June 2019, specifies Mediapart.

According to the site, investigators suspect Laurent Platini, provisional general manager between 2011 and 2016 of the Qatari equipment supplier Burrda Sport, a subsidiary of QSI, of having been hired in return for the vote of his father, then president of UEFA, in favor of Qatar.

"No solicitation, no transaction"

Asked by AFP, the entourage of Michel Platini “totally refutes these allegations.

(…) As he has been repeating for four years with constancy, there has been no solicitation or transaction in any area whatsoever, concerning his votes, ”we said.

Michel Platini “still does not understand what he is doing in this case and is tired of being defamed like this.

He now plans to summon those who peddle these lies, ”added those around him.

A judicial investigation for “active and passive corruption, concealment and money laundering” was opened in December 2019 by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) after three years of its preliminary investigation.

Michel Platini and the former secretary general of the French presidency Claude Guéant were taken into custody in June 2019. The former sports advisor to former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Sophie Dion, was also auditioned.

A Sarkozy-Platini lunch interests justice

Justice is particularly interested in a lunch on November 23, 2010 between Nicolas Sarkozy, then head of state, two senior Qatari leaders and Michel Platini, at the time boss of UEFA, on the organization of the Cup of the football world 2022.

A few months after this lunch and the victorious vote of Qatar, PSG was sold in May 2011 to QSI by Colony Capital, whose representative in France was Sébastien Bazin, a businessman close to Nicolas Sarkozy.

“Mr. Laurent Platini was an employee of PSG before the acquisition of the club by Colony.

He left office in 2009. His possible return to the club has never been a condition for the club's acquisition by QSI, ”a spokesperson for Sébastien Bazin told AFP.

Contacted, the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) had not responded Monday evening.

To date, none of the protagonists have been indicted in this case.

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