Benjamin Mendy awarded £11million unpaid wages in legal battle against Man City

Manchester City will have to pay former full-back Benjamin Mendy £11.5million in unpaid wages after he was cleared of sexual assualt charges

Will Schofield Senior Sports Reporter

11:11, 06 Nov 2024

French footballer Benjamin Mendy leaves Chester Crown Court in Chester, north-west England, on July 14, 2023, having been cleared of one count of rape and another of attempted rape. A UK court jury on Friday acquitted former Manchester City and France footballer Benjamin Mendy of one count of rape and another of attempted rape. Mendy, 28, had been on trial at Chester Crown Court, northwest England, after previously being cleared of six counts of rape and one of sexual assault

Benjamin Mendy has been awarded £11.5million in unpaid wages(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Benjamin Mendy has been awarded £11.5million in unpaid wages by Manchester City.

Mendy, 30, took the Premier League champions to an employment tribunal when his £500,000-a-month salary was halted in 2021 following his rape charge. The Frenchman stood trial twice, but he was cleared last year.

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He has since resumed his football career with Ligue 2 side Lorient, and he claimed for "unauthorised deductions" from his wages. Mendy claimed for his unpaid wages plus bonuses written into his contract that included a £900,000 bonus for appearing in 60% of matches.

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Mendy also claimed he was due a £1million bonus if City qualified for the Champions League plus an annual £1.2million payment to his image rights company.

City stopped Mendy's wages one month after he was charged in 2021 after City chiefs claimed Menday was not "not presently ready and able to perform” the obligations of his contract". He added Omar Berrada, then of City, said he would receive his unpaid wages once he had been cleared.

Benjamin Mendy was cleared of the allegations last year(Image: Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)

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However, when Mendy messaged Berrada in November 2022 for confirmation, he received no response. Mendy also claimed he received no message back from City's chief executive Khaldoon Al Mubarak.

As a result, the former French international was forced to borrow money from team-mates - with the court hearing Riyad Mahrez, Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling helped the full-back out as he ran out of cash "very quickly".

Mendy was also forced to sell his Cheshire mansion to cover legal fees, bills and child support payments after his wages were withheld.

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MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 23: Benjamin Mendy of Manchester City celebrates with the trophy during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Everton at Etihad Stadium on May 23, 2021 in Manchester, England. A limited number of fans will be allowed into Premier League stadiums as Coronavirus restrictions begin to ease in the UK following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Benjamin Mendy last played for Manchester City in 2021(Image: Getty Images)

Sean Jones KC, representing City, told the tribunal Mendy only had himself to blame for his lack of cash for his "irresponsible" behaviour that included reports lockdown-busting parties at his mansion and breaking his bail conditions.

"The essence of the submission by Mr Mendy is that his contract creates a moral hazard," Mr Jones told the tribunal.

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"He says 'I can behave as irresponsibly as I like, I can ignore all the rules, both legal, of the club and common sense to the point where my behaviour results in prison.' He is trying to make a moral hazard into a virtue.

“He says ‘It should in no way affect my entitlement to pay. There should be no consequences to my behaviour.'"