France Footballer Paul Pogba's Brother Sentenced To Year In Prison In Extortion Case

A Paris court on Thursday sentenced a brother of France midfielder Paul Pogba to a three-year prison term, with two years suspended, after convicting him in a high-profile extortion case. Mathias Pogba, the elder brother of the ex-Manchester United player, will be able to serve his one-year sentence at home while wearing an electronic device rather than behind bars. The court also fined Paul Pogba's brother 20,000 euros for participating in the attempted extortion of 13 million euros ($13.5 million) from Pogba in 2022, and for putting pressure on the player, his family and his business contacts to obtain the payment.

Mathias Pogba's lawyer Mbeko Tabula said the ruling was "extremely harsh," adding he planned to appeal.

"He's obviously in a state of shock," he said of his client.

"From the outset, he has maintained his innocence, saying that he was manipulated, that he was coerced, that he was pressured, that he would never have acted negatively towards his brother."

The trial came on top of professional woes for Paul Pogba, whose career has been far from smooth since France's 2018 World Cup win when he scored against Croatia in the final.

The 31-year-old suffered through repeated injuries and patchy form that led to his departure from Manchester United in 2022. He returned for a second stint at Juventus, where problems continued to dog him.

He is serving a suspension for doping which was reduced to 18 months on appeal and he will be free to play again in March next year, but last month Juventus terminated his contract.

The extortion case involving six men linked to Paul Pogba has shocked the French football world because the alleged perpetrators included three childhood friends and Pogba's own brother.

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