Qatar 'fed up' with Sarkozy hogging PSG presidential box

Qatar is reportedly tired of Nicolas Sarkozy regularly hogging the presidential box at Paris Saint Germain’s football ground, as it wants to cosy up to his political opponents now that the ex-French president is facing political demotion, according to a French report.

Mr Sarkozy, who is fighting an uphill battle to be chosen to run for re-election next year on behalf of his conservative opposition party, The Republicans, is a die-hard supporter of PSG, the French capital’s star-studded team.

A regular fixture at the royal box at the Parc des Prince stadium alongside its Qatari boss Nasser Ghanim Al-Khelaïfi, he braved the cold to attend a New Year’s game at the Parc des Princes stadium with his extended family.

But according to claims made by the Libération newspaper, his presence has become “undesirable”.

It suggested they “could do without him” making such regular appearance as he is acting as a “scarecrow and chasing off certain political rivals...adversaries that the Qataris would like to speak to about this and that in the convivial atmosphere of a match”.

A spokesman for PSG declined to comment, merely saying that the report was “false”.

If the report proves accurate, it would display a singular lack of gratitude, as Mr Sarkozy was instrumental in helping the Qataris buy the once floundering and new almost unbeatable club, Libération's article said.

In 2010, the then French president hosted a now notorious lunch at the Élysée Palace with Qatar’s then crown prince Tamin bin Hamad Al-Thani, UEFA boss Michel Platini and Sébastien Bazin, owner of PSG.

At this meeting, it is claimed, the sale of PSG was agreed. As part of the deal, the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera broadcaster would be given the opportunity to buy the rights to televise French league games.

The following summer, both deals came to fruition. PSG then embarked on the most extraordinary spending spree ever seen in French football, spending hundreds of millions of pounds on stars like Thiago Motta, Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The left-leaning daily asked whether this alleged ostracism was the latest sign that Mr Sarkozy’s presidential comeback appears increasingly far-fetched.

The 61-year-old Right-winger is pinning his hopes of winning back popular support ahead of November presidential primaries on his new book, France for Life, out this week.

In the "personal" work, Mr Sarkozy confesses to regretting borrowing a billionaire friend’s private jet and yacht shortly after his 2007 election for a quick break, saying it was an “unquestionable error of judgment” that turned into a “personal nightmare”.

However, French media mocked his mea culpa on Thursday after it emerged that he took a private jet to a luxury family holiday in Marrakesh over Christmas at the expense of Morocco’s royal family.

News of the trip only filtered through after his youngest son; Louis, posted Instagram pictures with his girlfriend at the luxury destination, with one caption by a huge swimming pool reading: “Yeah, we're doing alright.”

Mr Sarkozy yesterday hoped to remove another thorn in his political side - the prospect of being tried for corruption. His lawyers asked France's highest court to throw out evidence obtained through wiretaps of phone conversations with his main lawyer.

If it's ruled illegal, preliminary charges for active corruption and influence-peddling will collapse and the ex-president will received a boost ahead of November primaries.