PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain says it has found no evidence of discrimination following an internal investigation triggered by reports that the club's scouts illegally profiled the ethnic origins of potential young recruits.
Following a meeting involving PSG officials and sports minister Roxana Maracineanu on Thursday, the French soccer club said the investigation based on interviews of employees in charge of recruitment established "there is no proven case of discrimination."
Last week, the French league of human rights filed a discrimination lawsuit against the club, and the French soccer federation asked its ethics council to investigate the case.
PSG has admitted that forms with illegal content were used between 2013-17 but declined responsibility for implementing the policy after the Mediapart news website reported that up until this year, scouts were asked by PSG to mention the origin of possible recruits according to ethnic categories.
"None of these forms has ever been reported to the general management," PSG said. "No change in the characteristics of young players recruited was observed."
French law prohibits the collection of personal data that shows the racial or ethnic origins of individuals.
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