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10th Jun 2015

Lionel Messi to stand trial for tax fraud

Lionel Messi's appeal against allegations that he defrauded the Spanish authorities out of millions in tax has been thrown out of court

Eric Lalor

Lionel Messi’s appeal against allegations that he defrauded the Spanish authorities out of millions in tax has been thrown out of court.

It means that Messi, and his father Jorge Horacio Messi, will now stand trial for allegedly selling image rights via foreign-based companies to avoid Spanish tax obligations.

It is alleged the pair defrauded the Spanish government out of €4.1m (just under £3m) in unpaid tax between 2006 and 2009.