Star footballer Cristiano Ronaldo will pay a 3.2 million euro fine after settling a tax evasion case with Spanish authorities.
Ronaldo, age 33, will also be sentenced to 24 months in prison as part of the deal, officials said today, though he is unlikely to serve the jail term as Spanish law states that a sentence of under two years for a first offence can be served on probation.
The Portuguese forward, formerly of Spanish superclub Real Madrid, was accused last year of defrauding authorities of 14.7 million euros in unpaid taxes between 2011 and 2014 via shell companies based in the British Virgin Islands and Ireland, known for their low corporate tax rates.
In addition, prosecutors allege Ronaldo declared only 11.5 million euros of Spanish-related income from 2011 to 2014, during which time his actual earnings were close to 43 million euros.
They also accuse him of “voluntarily” refusing to include 28.4 million euro in income linked to the sale of his image rights for the 2015 to 2020 period to a Spanish company.
Ronaldo, a five-time World Player of the Year, has previously denied the allegations.
