Former San Diego FC forward Cédric Bakambu has filed a housing discrimination lawsuit in federal court against one real estate firm, two property owners and two real estate agents, according to information contained in the filing.
The lawsuit, a copy of which has been viewed by ESPN, alleges the defendants discriminated against Bakambu and his wife, Anne-Laure Hueber, on the basis of "familial status" by denying them the opportunity rent a house because they had children who would be living with them.
According to the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, the individuals and entities listed as defendants are property owners JW Wealth and Sheila Nasehi, real estate firm Compass California III and Compass agents Gillian Gillies and Bree Bornstein.
Neither Major League Soccer nor San Diego FC are named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
Bakambu and Hueber are seeking unspecified compensatory, statutory and punitive damages, as well as declaratory and injunctive relief, attorney's fees and costs under the Fair Housing Act, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act and the Unruh Civil Rights Act.
Bakambu signed with San Diego FC back on Sept. 3, and in nine matches for SDFC, he scored four goals with one assist.
In an Instagram post dated Nov. 6, Bakambu, a Congo DR international who played at last summer's World Cup, announced that he would no longer be playing for San Diego, stating, "Some decisions are beyond our control."
A request for comment from a representative for JW Wealth wasn't successful. A request for comment from Compass was also not successful.
ESPN has asked San Diego FC, MLS and the MLS Players' Association for comment.
The suit, which was filed on Monday, alleged two instances of discrimination. In the first alleged incident, Bakambu made an offer to rent a 5,679 square-foot house in San Diego, Calif. for a monthly rent of $17,500.
The filing details how Gillies, the agent representing Compass, stated that a pool barrier "would be required due to the age of the children" and asked whether Bakambu would pay an estimated $6,000 to install it if the owner approved.
Alternatives were proposed by Bakambu's broker, Sandra Shebani, including mesh covers and splash alarms.
Gillies responded: "A barrier will need to be installed."
The requirement wasn't mentioned in the property listing.
By Sept. 16, Bakambu made an updated offer that included paying a year's rent in advance, a Pool and Spa Liability Addendum, and an agreement to pay for the barrier.
According to the filing, Compass managing director Melanie Fontana later told Shebani that another applicant that met the lease requirements was under consideration, that Bakambu's offer had been received and that the owner would fund any pool safety measures.
The lawsuit goes on to state that on Sept. 18, 2026, Ms. Shebani raised the fair-housing concern directly with Kathy Mehringer, Compass's Broker of Record and Managing Director of Compliance and Risk Management.
Mehringer responded: "Melanie has explained the process. Compass is not violating any fair housing rules - why would you accuse us of doing so? That is not collaboration."
The filing states that Bakambu's offer was never accepted, and the rental listing was withdrawn from the market after his real estate agent raised fair-housing concerns with Compass management. The suit states that by tying rental conditions to the children and their ages, Bakambu and Hueber were discriminated against.
Later, Bakambu and Hueber sought to rent a 6,300 square-foot house through Compass in Rancho Sante Fe, Calif., and on Oct. 11, 2026, after viewing the property with Bornstein, offered a monthly rent of $23,500.
The filing states: "The offer and follow-up from Ms. Hueber went unanswered even after Plaintiffs observed the home being advertised for $20,000 per month by October 26, 2026."
On Nov. 6, the rental property was taken off the market.
The suit alleges that Compass and Bornstein, its listing agent for the second property, discriminated against Bakambu and Hueber by failing to consider or negotiate their offer because of familial status, and that this was in retaliation for Bakambu and Hueber raising fair-housing concerns regarding negotiations for the first property.
While this was going on, Bakambu's family was forced to remain in temporary housing at his own expense, according to the filing.
The filing reads: "Cédric and Anne allege that this sequence was not [an] ordinary rental negotiation. They were denied equal consideration because their household included five children, and Compass subjected them to further adverse treatment after they asserted their fair-housing rights.
"The consequences were concrete: lost housing opportunities, additional expenses, prolonged housing instability, disruption of efforts to arrange schooling and activities for their children, humiliation, and emotional distress."