The renowned footballer Lionel Messi and his father will be tried for tax fraud.
The pair has been charged with tax fraud for allegedly failing to declare €4.16 million in taxes relating to the rights to use his image between 2007 and 2009.
Barcelona star Messi, 28, and his father Jorge are accused of ceding the player’s image rights to front companies in Belize and Uruguay to avoid declaring money made from well-paid deals with sponsors in Spain.
Messi’s father has managed his son’s affairs since he was a child, leading prosecutors to ask for the case against the footballer to be dropped, but last October a judge disagreed, writing in a court document that "there are rational signs that the criminality was committed by both accused parties."
Both have denied the accusations and said a former financial advisor was to blame. Jorge Messi made a voluntary “corrective” payment of €5 million when they were formally charged in 2013.
The trial, at a court in Barcelona is to stretch from 31 May to 2 June, ending just days before Messi is due lead Argentina’s team at the Copa America football series in California on 6 June.
Messi won a record fifth Ballon d'Or award last week for the world’s best player.
Last month Messi and his father were cleared of separate tax fraud allegations relating to charitable friendly matches played in 2012 and 2013.
