The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he is owed, the league announced on Thursday.
The decision, made without further details, comes a day after Mbappé rejected a mediation offer from the commission in his dispute with his former club. PSG officials and Mbappé’s representatives met in Paris on Wednesday following the player’s request for the commission to intervene. Mbappé had joined Real Madrid earlier this summer on a free transfer.
After the meeting, Mbappé’s representatives explained that the forward was seeking payment for three months’ salary and the final portion of a loyalty bonus, which had not been paid.
PSG has refused to pay and indicated plans to pursue further legal action.
“Given the commission’s limited authority in fully resolving this matter, PSG will now contest it in another legal forum, where we look forward to presenting all the facts over the coming months”, the club stated.
PSG maintains that it owes no money to Mbappé, citing an agreement reached when the player was sidelined ahead of the 2023-24 season. This followed Mbappé’s decision not to extend his contract, with the player allegedly agreeing to forgo bonuses tied to his reintegration into the squad.
“As a matter of law and fact, the player has made clear, repeated public and private commitments that must be honored, especially given the unprecedented benefits PSG has afforded him over seven years“, the club added after the league’s decision. “PSG hopes that these commitments will be respected in the appropriate forum, should the player choose to pursue this reputationally damaging issue further.”
Mbappé’s relationship with PSG deteriorated during his final season at the club. Tensions arose after PSG offered him the most lucrative contract in their history in 2022, a deal Mbappé believed would include the signing of key players, which he felt the club failed to deliver on. While he was presented to fans holding a jersey marked “2025,” the actual contract was only valid until 2024, with an option for an additional year.
In June 2022, Mbappé shocked PSG by informing the club that he would not extend his contract for the extra season, effectively placing PSG in a position where they needed to sell him to avoid losing him for free the following year.
Mbappé’s PSG career almost ended in the summer of 2023 amid a tense transfer standoff. After informing the club that he would not renew his contract, he was excluded from a preseason tour of Japan and South Korea and trained separately from the main squad. PSG considered selling him, turning down a 300-million-euro offer from Saudi club Al-Hilal, but Mbappé refused to leave.
The standoff continued as PSG left him out of their first league game of the season but eventually allowed his return to the team after what the club described as “constructive and positive talks.”