Prosecutors grill Khelaifi

Swiss prosecutors on Wednesday began grilling Paris Saint-Germain president and beIN Media chief Nasser al-Khelaifi over allegations that he obtained World Cup media rights by bribing a top FIFA executive.

Khelaifi, a Qatari with close ties to the Gulf state's royal family, is under investigation for allegedly striking illegal deals with former FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke, who had been Sepp Blatter's right-hand man.

Khelaifi, 43, and his legal team avoided the main entrance when entering the OAG headquarters in the Swiss capital and were not seen by the two dozen reporters outside.

Khelaifi and Valcke have been under investigation since March in connection with media rights for the 2026 and 2030 World Cups on allegations including corruption, bribery, criminal mismanagement and forgery.

The beIN Media group, which is headquartered in Doha, has insisted that its World Cup rights deals were "advantageous for FIFA", rejecting any suggestion that it got favourable treatment.

The contract covers broadcasting rights for the MENA (Middle East, North Africa) region for the tournaments.