The National Financial Prosecutor's (NFP) Office in Paris has launched the investigation into a complaint lodged against Aloïsio, according to a report by the Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Sébastien Chesbeuf, a former public affairs manager in institutional relations for Paris 2024, has issued the complaint criticising the awarding a public contract by the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region to put together its pre-candidacy file for a 2030 Winter Olympics bid.

Chesbeuf had been working as a consultant for sports marketing agency Keneo at the time of the awarding of the contract earlier this year.

It is claimed by Chesbeuf that Aloïsio persuaded Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur President Renaud Muselier to favour RNK - a company specialising in the development of sports events.

RNK was co-founded at the end of 2020 by Édouard Donnelly who departed the company in November 2022 when he became executive director of operations for Paris 2024.

It was part of a group of companies that had already won a major contract with Paris 2024 over the organisation of its Torch Relay course.

Chesbeuf alleges that Aloïsio’s intervention led to Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur choosing RNK over Keneo.

In the complaint reported by French newspaper L'Équipe, Chesbeuf claimed that Aloïsio’s involvement in the awarding of the contract is "likely to characterise the offence of favouritism and the offence of influence peddling".

Aloïsio told AFP that he "firmly refuted the slanderous accusations of Mr. Chesbeuf, who has been in conflict with Paris 2024 since his dismissal" in 2020.

It is claimed by Aloïsio that the discussions with Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur "are part of the framework of sharing experiences" for their future candidacy for 2030.

The Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has joined forces with Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes to form a joint bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.

The French National Olympic and Sports Committee is aiming to enter "targeted dialogue" with the International Olympic Committee by December in a bid to win the hosting rights.

The premises of Keneo was raided by French anti-corruption authorities as well as the headquarters of Paris 2024 and Solideo, the company responsible for the construction of Olympic sites in June.

The homes of Paris 2024 director general Etienne Thobois and Donnelly were also searched.

It is part of an investigation into contracts awarded for the Games, opened in 2017 by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office and entrusted to the Central Office for the Fight against Corruption and Financial and Tax Offenses.

Alleged offences include illegal taking of interests, embezzlement of public funds, favouritism and trying to conceal it.

In May 2017, four months before Paris was awarded the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, records revealed that Keneo had received €2 million (£1.7 million/$2.2 million) in contracts linked to the bid, while there were potential conflicts of interest between the team responsible for preparing the French candidacy and the consultancy firm.

At the time, Thobois defended the links with Keneo, which he had founded in 2008 and revealed he had sold his shares in the company shortly before being appointed chief executive of Paris 2024 in July 2015.

Donnelly, who founded Keneo with Thobois, continued to be involved with the company until 2018.

But, in 2016, after Thobois had left, Keneo was bought by Japanese marketing company Dentsu.

Earlier this week, NFP Office director Jean-François Bohnert had claimed he does not expect to uncover the "most serious cases of corruption" while investigating Paris 2024, and vowed not to "disrupt" preparations for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.