The power struggle continues. The French forward had until July 31 to activate the third optional year of his contract with the Parisian club. PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi announced that if the 24-year-old player decides not to extend his Parisian contract, he will be placed on the list of players for sale and invited to find a new club. However, the World Cup champion had already announced in a letter sent to the club’s management in June that he would not activate his additional year and would stay in Paris until the summer of 2024, the end of his contract. As a result, the Parisian club’s management has decided to exclude the player from the professional group until further notice.
Mbappé has been training for a week at Poissy (Yvelines), with other undesirable elements, while his teammates are on a tour in Japan to play pre-season matches. But is this situation tenable for the Parisian club? Could Mbappé’s camp turn against PSG legally? Let’s take a look.
The PSG is not at risk until September 2
“In the football world, it’s the professional football charter, written by the League and the players’ union, that serves as a collective agreement,” explains Thierry Granturco, a sports law specialist. It includes Article 507, which states that a club has the possibility to exclude a player from the professional group if he is in the process of leaving until September 2, the end of the transfer window. Even if the PSG striker is not necessarily about to leave, since he wants to stay at the club, his camp would find it difficult to challenge his exclusion before next season. However, if Mbappé is not reintegrated into the professional group after September 2, he will have the opportunity to refer his situation to the legal commission of the Professional Football League (LFP). In the vast majority of cases, the LFP asks the club to reintegrate the player into the first team.
The situation could become more complicated if PSG decides not to give in and leaves Mbappé out of the professional group this autumn. In this case, the World Cup champion’s camp will have the opportunity to refer the matter to an employment tribunal to challenge his exclusion, just like any employee. “In the event of a legal procedure, it is obvious that Mbappé would win his case since he is unable to practice his profession as a footballer,” continues Thierry Granturco. He would be considered as dismissed and would therefore be free from any contract. The former Monaco player could then commit to the club of his choice without PSG receiving any transfer fees. This is exactly the situation that Nasser al-Khelaifi is seeking to avoid.
Mbappé has the rules on his side
To avoid making a mistake, PSG’s management could also decide to reintegrate Mbappé into the professional group at the beginning of next season while depriving him of competition. But once again, the Parisian club would expose itself to sanctions if legal proceedings were initiated by Mbappé’s camp. “For PSG to win its case in the employment tribunal, its lawyers would have to convince the judge that Mbappé is not playing for sporting reasons, but it is obviously impossible since he is one of the best players in the world. The most likely scenario is that the tribunal would terminate the contract and free Mbappé from his commitments with PSG.”
Whether it’s the professional football charter or potential legal proceedings, the rules are extremely protective of footballers. “In his power struggle with PSG, Mbappé has all the legal rules on his side,” concludes Thierry Granturco. “In 90% of cases, footballers win their cases against their employers.”
