Barcelona star Lionel Messi and his dad has been handed a 21-month prison sentence for tax fraud but they are unlikely to serve time in prison.
Any sentence under two years can be suspended under Spanish law,
meaning Messi is expected to avoid spending a day behind bars, according
to widespread reports.
Messi, one of the world’s highest-paid footballers, was tried
alongside his father, Jorge Horacio Messi, for deceiving Spain’s tax
authority of €4.1 million (£3.19m) between 2007 and 2009.
The forward, who recently announced his retirement from the Argentina national team, has also been fined six weeks’ wages worth £1.7 million.
The
29-year-old was accused of creating a number of fake companies in
Belize and Uruguay to avoid taxation on his lucrative image rights.
Messi claimed he never suspected any wrongdoing about his financial
affairs, but a court has found both he and his father guilty in the
crime.
Jorge has also been given the same sentence and both can appeal through the Supreme Court.