Paul Pogba’s brother was sentenced to three years in the case of extortion

The older brother of former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has been sentenced to three years in prison, with two years suspended, after being found guilty of attempting to extort the French footballer.

Mathias Pogba, who was also fined €20,000 (£16,500), will avoid jail and will instead serve a year with an electronic bracelet.

Five other men were found guilty of extortion and other crimes and received terms ranging from four to eight years in a Paris court on Thursday.

Paul Pogba, 31, has said he was “tricked by childhood friends” who have targeted him in 2022 and demanded €13m (£10.8m). He said he paid them €100,000 (£82,600).

Mathias Pogba’s lawyer Mbeka Tabula told RMC Sport the sentence was “extremely harsh” and said “I think we will appeal”.

The remaining five defendants were sentenced to the following sentences: Rushdan K. received eight years, Bubakar S. four years, two suspended, Adam S. five years, Mamadou M. five years, 12 months suspended, and Machikur K. four years, three suspended.

Paul Pogba told Al Jazeera last year that he was considered retiring from football due to attempted extortion.

“When there’s money, you have to be careful,” he said. “Money changes people. They can destroy a family. They can cause war.”

Former professional footballer Mathias Pogba played for clubs such as Partick Thistle, Wrexham, Crewe Alexandra and Crawley Town. His last club was French Belfort, who left him in 2022.