Footballer Lionel Messi investigated for tax fraud in Spain

Firstly I thought we had  specific Messi thread, and secondly this could, and maybe should have gone into the Current Affairs Board.

Footballer Lionel Messi investigated for tax fraud in Spain

Barcelona footballer Lionel Messi and his father are being investigated in Spain for allegedly defrauding the state of more than 4m euros (£3.4m).

The 25-year-old Argentina forward and his father, Jorge Horacio, are suspected of filing fraudulent tax returns for 2007-09, officials say.

The World Player of the Year denied the allegation.

His net annual salary at Barcelona is said to be 16m euros, making him one of the world's highest-paid athletes.

He has also signed a number of multimillion-dollar endorsements with major sponsors around the globe.

Image rights

On Wednesday, a complaint signed by prosecutor Raquel Amado was filed at the courthouse in Gava - the affluent Barcelona district where Messi lives.

Judges at the courthouse must accept the complaint before the suspects can be charged, reports say.

Messi and his father are suspected of using companies abroad - in Belize and Uruguay - to sell the rights to use the footballer's image.

The accusation is that by using companies based outside Spain, where he lives and plays club football, Messi and his father avoided paying more than 4m euros in tax.

If convicted, Messi could face up to six years in prison and a large fine, according to Spain's EFE news agency.

Responding to the allegation, Messi expressed surprise at Wednesday's development.

He wrote on his Facebook page: "We have never committed any infringement. We have always fulfilled all our tax obligations, following the advices of our tax consultants who will take care of clarifying this situation."

The investigation comes as the Spanish authorities step up their efforts to clamp down on tax fraud, as the government tries to balance its budget during a continuing economic crisis, the BBC's Tom Burridge in Madrid reports.

Messi's record
Messi joined Barcelona as a 13-year-old in 2000, and made his first-team debut three years later.

He soon became one of the most influential players at the Catalan team, winning Europe's most prestigious club competition - the Champions League - three times.

Last year, Messi scored a record 86 goals for club and country in a calendar year.

He is now considered by many experts to be one of football's best ever players.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-22877408

Interesting.

Imminent transfer request to Boca?

Seems trial has started now.

Surely he would just pay it if it was true and gone to court. I mean it's not exactly a huge amount of money to him is it, pocket change for someone in his position and would he really risk damaging his reputation and image?

Surely he would just pay it if it was true and gone to court. I mean it's not exactly a huge amount of money to him is it, pocket change for someone in his position and would he really risk damaging his reputation and image?

i maybe wrong but there was a ruling that the case should be dropped but the woman prosecutor has insisted on carrying on, she was a former director at real madrid