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Messi to face tax evasion trial

October 3, 2014

A Spanish court has dismissed football star Lionel Messi's appeal against tax fraud charges. Public prosecutors had called for the case to be scrapped.

https://p.dw.com/p/1DPZa
Barcelona football star Lionel Messi (R) and his brother Rodrigo arrive to the courhouse in the coastal town of Gava near Barcelona on September 27, 2013 to face judges on tax evasion charges (Photo: JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)
Image: Josep Lago/AFP/Getty Images

Argentina and Barcelona striker Lionel Messi and his father, Jorge Horacio Messi, were accused last year of defrauding the Spanish authorities of 4.16 million euros ($5 million) in taxes on the player's earnings from image rights during 2007-2009.

Spain's public prosecutor had argued in June that Lionel Messi's name should be removed from the case because Jorge, who is also Messi's manager, was responsible for dealing with the four-time World Player of the Year's finances.

But the court ruled in July that there was "sufficient evidence" to believe that Messi "could have known and consented" to the creation of a fake corporate structure to evade taxes, and ordered the prosecution of continue with the case.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter (L) applauds as Lionel Messi of Argentine receives the FIFA Men's World Player of the Year 2012 award during the FIFA Ballon d'Or 2012 Gala at the Kongresshaus in Zurich January 7, 2013 (Photo: REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann)
Messi has been hailed 'world's best' on a number of occasionsImage: Reuters

Messi's lawyers had appealed against that decision, with the court on Friday throwing out their call to drop the case.

The Messis, who deny any wrongdoing, have five days to appeal against the court's latest ruling.

"In this type of crime, it is not necessary for someone to have complete knowledge of all the accounting and business operations nor the exact quantity, rather it is sufficient to be aware of the designs to commit fraud and consent to them," the court in Barcelona said on Friday, dismissing the petition and upholding its earlier decision.

Spanish authorities have been cracking down on tax evaders as they fight to repair the country's economy.

Last year, the Argentine captain's father paid five million euros to the authorities to cover alleged unpaid taxes, including interest.

Messi's wealth and influence

According to the Forbes business magazine, Messi is the fourth richest sportsperson in the world, with an annual income of just under $65 million. Between 2007 and 2009, the Barcelona playmaker earned more than $10 million in image rights, including contracts with Banco Sabadell, Danone, Adidas, Pepsi-Cola, Procter and Gamble, and the Kuwait Food Company.

Lionel Messi of Argentina fights off Mesut Oezil of Germany during the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Final match between Germany and Argentina at Maracana on July 13, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Photo: Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
Though he came very close in July, Messi has never won the World Cup with ArgentinaImage: Getty Images

In June, the 27-year-old player led Argentina to this year's FIFA World Cup final in Brazil, where his team lost to Germany 1-0 after extra time. Messi, who is widely considered the best player of his generation, is three goals away from equaling the Spanish league's all-time scoring record, which has been held by Athletic Bilbao's Telmo Zarra for almost 60 years.

shs/glb (AFP, Reuters)