Football: Trial in Brazil for Dimitri Payet, accused of psychological violence

French footballer Dimitri Payet will be the target of a trial in Brazil, where a woman who claims to have had a relationship with him when he played for Vasco de Gama is accusing him of psychological abuse, a source close to the case told AFP on Monday.

A judge in Rio de Janeiro (southeast) accepted the complaint filed by lawyer Larissa Ferrari for psychological and emotional damages on July 25, according to this source. The press services of the public prosecutor's office and the courts of Rio declined to confirm the decision, as the case is subject to judicial secrecy.

The Brazilian prosecutor's office formally indicted the 38-year-old former Marseille player on June 20. According to the newspaper O Globo, he is accused of "insulting and degrading acts and remarks, such as humiliation, manipulation, and mockery."

Larissa Ferrari filed a complaint in March for "physical, moral, psychological and sexual violence," according to the prosecutor's office. In April, the 28-year-old told AFP that Dimitri Payet had demanded "proof of love" involving "humiliation," including videos of her "drinking her own urine, toilet water or licking the floor." Prosecutors are seeking a conviction for the player, with payment for the lawyer's medical treatment, the source close to the case said.

The former Marseille player, who was living in Rio without his wife or children during his time with Vasco da Gama, admitted to an extramarital affair but denied violence, according to the Brazilian press, citing a police report.

The French international, currently without a club, had signed a two-year contract with the Rio side in 2023. However, the two parties announced in early June that they had reached an "amicable agreement to terminate the contract" between them.