Star Cristiano Ronaldo was yesterday accused of evading 14.7 million euros ($16.5m) in tax through offshore companies, the latest footballer to fall foul of fiscal authorities in Spain.
The 32-year-old – the world’s highest paid athlete according to Forbes magazine – follows in the steps of FC Barcelona forward and Argentina star Lionel Messi, who was found guilty of the same offence last year although the sums involved were allegedly smaller.
The issue of tax evasion has caused anger in a country only just emerging from a damaging economic crisis that has seen countless people lose their jobs and inequalities rise.
Ronaldo is accused of “four crimes against the public treasury between 2011-14... which involves tax fraud of 14,768,897 euros, the office said in a statement.
“The accused took advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities, which is a ‘voluntary’ and ‘conscious’ breach of his fiscal obligations in Spain,” it said.
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