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06th Jul 2016

Lionel Messi has been given a suspended 21 month prison sentence for tax evasion

Paul Moore

He won’t be behind bars

Lionel Messi has received a suspended jail sentence of 21 months and a fine of two million euros for three tax crimes, Reuters has reported.

The court has also sentenced Messi’s father and fined him around 1.5 million euros for tax crimes.

That Barcelona star will not serve time behind bars and both sentences can be appealed through the Supreme Court.

The sentence relates to Lionel and Jorge Messi defrauding Spain of €4.1m (£3.2m; $4.6m) between 2007 and 2009.