Troubled French footballer Ben Yedder signs for Moroccan club

Former France attacker Wissam Ben Yedder, who is due to stand trial accused of rape, has joined Moroccans Wydad Athletic Club on a six-month deal.

Last year, the public prosecutor’s office in Nice, southeastern France, decided the 35-year-old would stand trial for rape, attempted rape and sexual assault.

His brother Sabri is also due to stand trial for rape and sexual assault.

The charges came in 2023 following accusations made by two teenage women the brothers had met at a party.

“Wydad welcomes to the team their new player and express their full confidence that Wissam Ben Yedder will bring added value to the team,” the club from Casablanca, western Morocco announced on X.

The deal includes an option for an extra season.

In recent years, the 19-times capped former international has been making more headlines in the courts than on the pitch.

In September, he was fined 90,000 euros ($105,000) by the Nice criminal court for the psychological abuse of his wife, from whom he is currently in the process of divorcing.

He was also given a six-month suspended sentence by a Spanish court in 2023 for tax fraud during his 2016-19 spell at Sevilla.

In November 2024, he received a suspended two-year jail sentence for sexually assaulting a woman two months earlier.

Since leaving Monaco in 2024, the former Toulouse player has had short playing stints in Iran and Turkey.