French woman at center of prostitution scandal says football stars didn’t know she wasn’t 18

French escort: customers didn’t know she wasn’t 18

PARIS — The young woman rattling French football confirms she had paid sex with several World Cup national team stars but claims none of her customers knew she was under 18 years old at the time.

French media have revealed that Zahia Dehar, now 18, was paid for sex by several football stars, including Franck Ribery, Karim Benzema, and Sidney Govou. Dehar confirmed this in an interview published Thursday by the French weekly magazine Paris Match.

The players have testified to police and could face up to three years in prison and a euro45,000 ($60,000) fine.

Dehar said, “I never told anybody I was a minor.” She said she started having paid sex at 16, working in Paris nightclubs and charging about euro2,000 ($2,651.20) for the night.