"It will be my end"! 180,000 euros from Mbappe opens the door to a corruption scandal shaking France
Money laundering and tax evasion
A French newspaper has opened a dangerous file that shakes the very foundations of the French national team. Its central figure is not a player, but the man who for more than two decades was the most trusted presence inside the "Les Bleus" dressing room. Former head of security Mohamed Sanhadji, nicknamed "Momo", now stands accused of receiving hundreds of thousands of euros from the national team's stars, chief among them Kylian Mbappé.
French newspaper "L'Équipe" revealed in an investigation published this Thursday that the Real Madrid striker lent Sanhadji 120,000 euros, through his mother and agent Fayza Lamari, as part of a deal to buy a house. That loan was separate from an earlier sum of 60,300 euros he had given him as a "bonus" after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, bringing the total Mbappé provided him to 180,300 euros.
The details of the case go back to June 2023, when Mbappé decided to distribute his World Cup bonus to the security team charged with protecting the national side. Four officers received cheques worth 30,000 euros each, while Sanhadji received 60,300 euros. Those close to Mbappé insist the sums reflected appreciation for their services and carried no return. No charge has been brought against the player.
French financial intelligence unit "Tracfin", attached to the Ministry of the Economy, flagged those transactions in the summer of 2024. The Paris prosecutor's office then opened a preliminary investigation into suspicions of money laundering, tax evasion and undeclared work, aiming to verify whether the payments were genuine donations or disguised wages in exchange for private protection services. Suspicion deepened after investigators noted private trips between Sanhadji and Mbappé outside his official duties, among them a private trip to Cameroon in July 2023, days after he received the 60,300 euros.
The shadow man requested by Zidane
For more than two decades, Sanhadji held the post of head of security after joining as a police officer in 2004. He became a pivotal figure the players simply called "Momo". His influence ran so deep that the players themselves, according to L'Équipe, insisted on taking him to the 2026 World Cup in America, and Zinedine Zidane also pushed to keep him within his new staff at the French Federation.
Yet the network of loans stretched far wider than Mbappé. According to the newspaper, Sanhadji requested money from around 15 current and former players and obtained loans worth 215,000 euros. Raphaël Varane, Sabri Lamouchi and Laurent Blanc each lent him 20,000 euros, Yann M'Vila 15,000 euros, and Matteo Guendouzi 7,500 euros.
Mbappé's sum alone represents more than half of that total. L'Équipe affirms that he received more than 300,000 euros between 2020 and 2024, without counting holidays and benefits in kind.
Secrecy ran through every request. Sanhadji wrote to Guendouzi on 25 October 2024, in messages seen by the newspaper: "If this matter comes to light, it will be the end of me."
From the police to the Federation, then the fall
Administratively, the 60,300-euro transaction carried major consequences. On 19 December 2025, the National Police Directorate informed him of his early retirement after an investigation by the General Inspectorate, which criticised him for failing to tell his superiors about the cheque he had received from Mbappé.
Despite all that, the French Federation signed him directly until July 2026 and he accompanied the national team at the World Cup. His standing peaked on 2 June, during President Emmanuel Macron's visit to the Clairefontaine centre, when Mbappé personally called Sanhadji over to join the group photo with the President.
Everything turned on 16 September. He was formally charged with receiving stolen public funds, active and passive corruption, influence peddling, fraud, and money laundering related to tax evasion, while enjoying the presumption of innocence.
Judges placed him under strict supervision that prevents him from communicating with any current or former player, coach or Federation official. He is also barred from entering Clairefontaine, the Stade de France and the Parc des Princes except with a judge's permission, banned from any professional sporting activity, and ordered to pay bail of 80,000 euros. The French Federation, meanwhile, decided to join the case as a civil party.
