Prosecutors in Sweden have closed an investigation into an alleged rape case that Swedish media had linked to French football captain Kylian Mbappé.
Marina Chirakova, of the Swedish Prosecution Authority, confirmed that the inquiry into the alleged assault, said to have occurred in Stockholm, was closed due to insufficient evidence.
Although the case had been widely reported, Mbappé, one of football’s most prominent figures, was never officially named by prosecutors nor informed that he was under suspicion.
In October, following the emergence of the allegations, Mbappé’s lawyer stated that the player intended to clear his name through a defamation claim. Mbappé himself had dismissed the reports as “fake news.”
Chirakova, the senior prosecutor overseeing the investigation, concluded that the evidence was not adequate to proceed, resulting in the case being closed.
The alleged incident, along with two cases of sexual harassment, was said to have taken place at a hotel in Stockholm on October 10.
Several Swedish media outlets, including Aftonbladet, Expressen, and SVT, had named Mbappé as a suspect, as he was in Stockholm at the time of the incident.
Police were seen visiting the Bank hotel where he was staying and reportedly took items, including clothing, as evidence.
Speaking publicly for the first time about the case on French TV show Clique on Sunday, Mbappé denied being involved.
“I haven’t received anything, no summons… I’m not involved.”
His lawyer previously condemned the Swedish media reports as defamatory and said that nothing was known of the complaint.
“[Mbappé] is never alone. He is never put in a position where he ends up in a situation that would lead to him taking a risk,” Marie-Alix Canu-Bernard said.
The Real Madrid forward recently scored his 50th Champions League goal, marking a significant milestone in his career. He made the transfer from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) earlier this year.
Mbappé won the World Cup in 2018 as a teenager in Russia and later scored a hat-trick in the 2022 final in Qatar, where France lost to Lionel Messi’s Argentina in a penalty shootout.
During his time at PSG, he was part of a star-studded trio alongside Messi and Brazilian forward Neymar.
In 2023, the Paris-born star finished third in both the Ballon d’Or and the Best FIFA Men’s Player awards.
