Five-time world best footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, dodged a fraud trial that seemed destined to end in a jail-term when he paid a fine of $20 million to settle his tax fraud case on Friday.
The Real Madrid forward has been at the center of a messy tax fraud case with Spanish authorities since 2017. The deal between the fiscal authorities and Ronaldo’s advisors few hours before Portugal face Spain in the World Cup in Russia.
The agreement still has to be ratified and will likely come with a two-year jail term. The former Manchester United winger appeared in court last July at Pozuelo de Alarcon, to answer four counts of tax evasion.
Procecutors claim that the Real Madrid forward took advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities. He is alleged to have used companies in low-tax foreign jurisdictions — notably the British Virgin Islands and Ireland — to avoid having to pay the tax otherwise due.
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