French President Emmanuel Macron hosted a dinner at the Élysée Palace to welcome Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The event was attended by Kylian Mbappé, who arrived at the palace at 7:10 p.m., ten minutes after Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al Khelaïfi.
Mbappé arrived alone, dressed in black, and without any members of the PSG squad. It had been rumored that several members of the first team would attend the dinner, but the French national team captain was the only one who publicly appeared for the formal event organized by the French government.
Upon arrival, Mbappé greeted Brigitte Macron, President Macron, and the Emir of Qatar, with whom he had a brief conversation in a friendly tone.
RMC Sport cameras captured Macron’s words to Mbappé, in a friendly tone, acknowledging that “he was going to create more problems for him.” The presence of PSG’s all-time leading scorer was a mere formality, and he did not attend the dinner to discuss various issues about his future, which has already been decided after he notified Al Khelaïfi two weeks ago that he would be leaving Paris at the end of the season.
In 2022, Emmanuel Macron was a key player in convincing Kylian Mbappé to renew his contract with Paris Saint-Germain for two seasons. The President of the Republic intervened in the negotiations for his contract extension, aware that he could not leave Paris due to his popularity. The bilateral relationship between France and Qatar was further strengthened on Tuesday, with sources from the Élysée confirming that the Arab country will invest more than 10 billion euros in various infrastructures in France.
The dinner, which began after the Emir’s arrival at 8:00 p.m., was also attended by Vincent Labrune, president of the French LFP, who will seek the support of Al Khelaïfi, who also manages BeIN Sport, for the Qatari network to try to solve the problem of television rights. After Mbappé’s confirmed departure, Ligue 1 has not yet reached an agreement for the broadcasting of its matches for the next five years, so Labrune needs an investor to avoid suffering a major economic crisis without the still PSG player.
Macron to the Emir: “Qatar’s was the most spectacular final in history”
Emmanuel Macron did not miss the opportunity to have the Emir of Qatar in front of him to express his admiration for the 2022 World Cup held in the Arab country. The President of the Republic also highlighted the performance of some French players, including Kylian Mbappé, recognizing the work of the Qatari State in organizing a tournament that culminated in a final for the annals of football.
“There are also so many beautiful memories, in less serious but just as vibrant moments as this 2022 World Cup. Kylian Mbappé’s extraordinary match, the memory of Kolo Muani’s saved shot, which is still sour in French hearts. But that’s the beautiful game. You have put on a fantastic tournament, with what I believe was the most spectacular final in history. France was there with its fans, its security forces, its companies like the RATP and its footballers,” said Macron.
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