Lionel Messi and Father Sentenced to 21 Months in Tax Case

Barcelona superstar found guilty of three counts of tax fraud

By Diana Marti Jul 06, 2016 6:51 PMTags
Lionel MessiAlberto Estevez - Pool/Getty Images

A Barcelona court found Lionel Messi and his father Jorge Horacio Messi guilty of three counts of tax fraud and sentenced each to 21 months in prison.

It's unlikely that the Barcelona forward will actually serve time, the court saying in a statement that a sentence can be appealed through the Spanish supreme court. Under Spanish law, a tax prison sentence under two years can be served under probation. The court also added that Messi must pay a fine of $2.2 million, according to ESPN.

Messi and his father deny any wrongdoing, but the court agreed with prosecutors that they did actually have at least some knowledge of the crime being committed.

Tax inspectors said they found evidence that Messi's father used havens in Belize and Uruguay as well as shell companies in the U.K. and Switzerland to avoid paying taxes on earning from image rights from 2007 to 2009.

photos
Hottest Soccer Studs

In court last month, Messi admitted that he signed many documents without reading their contents and that he visited a notary's office to setup a company to handle his finances without really understanding what was going on.

Barcelona came to his defense in a statement not only to show their support for the player but to also say that they don't believe he is criminally responsible for the tax fraud.

"FC Barcelona gives all its support to Leo Messi and his father with relation to the sentence for tax evasion handed out by the Provincial Court in Barcelona today," they wrote. "The Club, in agreement with the Government prosecution service, considers that the player, who has corrected his position with the Spanish Tax Office, is in no way criminally responsible with regards to the facts underlined in this case.

"FC Barcelona continues to be at the disposal of Leo Messi and his family to support him in whatever action he decides to take in defence of his honesty and his legal interests."

According to Forbes, Messi earns a total of $81.4 million a year, making him the No. 2 in their list of world's highest-paid athletes for 2016.

photos
Highest Paid Athletes 2015