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Soccer player Partey pleads not guilty to rape, sexual assault charges in UK
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 17, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
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Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 17, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Thomas Partey, Villarreal midfielder, pleads not guilty to rape and sexual assault charges in UK court. Trial scheduled for November 2026.
LONDON (Reuters) - Villarreal midfielder Thomas Partey on Wednesday appeared in a London court and pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and sexual assault involving three women.
Partey, a Ghana international, is accused of five counts of rape relating to two women, plus a charge of sexual assault against a third woman, between April 2021 and June 2022.
The alleged offences took place when Partey played for Premier League soccer club Arsenal. He left the club this summer and signed for Spain's Villarreal.
The 32-year-old appeared in the dock at Southwark Crown Court and spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth and enter his not guilty pleas.
Partey was released on bail ahead of his trial, which was listed for Nov. 2, 2026 and is due to take between six and eight weeks.
He was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59.2 million) in 2020 and became a key member of the English side's first team, before his contract expired at the end of June.
Partey played for Villarreal in their Champions League game against Arsenal's bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday night.
He came on as a second-half substitute and was booed loudly by the Spurs fans every time he touched the ball.
($1 = 0.8442 euros)
(Reporting by Sam Tobin; editing by Sarah Young)
Thomas Partey has pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and sexual assault involving three women, with five counts of rape relating to two women and a charge of sexual assault against a third woman.
Thomas Partey's trial is scheduled for November 2, 2026, and is expected to last between six and eight weeks.
Before joining Villarreal, Thomas Partey played for Arsenal, where he became a key member of the first team after being signed from Atletico Madrid.
During a recent Champions League match against Tottenham Hotspur, Thomas Partey was booed loudly by Spurs fans every time he touched the ball.
Thomas Partey was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for a transfer fee of 50 million euros, which is approximately $59.2 million.
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