Goaaaaal! Football phenom, Lionel Messi, has reportedly scored in his battle against the Spanish authorities.
The Spanish publication, El Periodico, has announced that the FC Barcelona star has reached an agreement with Spanish tax authorities and will not face tax charges.
According to El Periodico, Messi has agreed to pay €15 million ($19,546,500 US) against claims that he and his father, Jorge Horacio, who was also charged in the case, hatched a scheme to avoid paying tax. Messi and his father allegedly used a series of shell companies in tax havens to shield royalties and other licensing income from Spanish income tax. The tax havens, said to be located in Belize and Uruguay, were the ultimate destination for the funds which were allegedly funneled through an elaborate maze including the U.K. and Switzerland. The scheme reportedly allowed the pair to avoid paying nearly €4.165 million ($5.5 million U.S.) in tax.
According to El Periodico, in addition to the settlement, Messi and his father have already paid €10 million ($1,3031,000 US) to the Spanish Treasury for 2010 and 2011. He is expected to make an additional payment for the tax year 2012 by June 30, 2013. That makes it likely that the total paid over to the Spanish Treasury will reach €30 million ($39,093,000 U.S.).
Several other sources, including ESPN UK and SB Nation, have also reported that a settlement had been reached. CBS Sports announced several days ago that Messi’s attorneys advised that Messi “could potentially settle his alleged tax-fraud case out of courts” although his defense team continues to maintain his innocence. To date, Messi’s defense team has not issued an official statement confirming or denying those reports.
Messi’s original court date was set for September 17. If convicted, he could have faced up to five years in prison and a fine of up to €24 million ($31,274,400 U.S.) just for the initial years under investigation. While the original complaint focused on the years 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009, I had previously reported that the charges were expected to be extended to include subsequent years. That appears to have been the case.
It’s clear that Messi could afford to pay a settlement. The football star, who turned 26 this week, is ranked #39 on Forbes’ Celebrity list and #10 on Forbes’ list of the most highly paid athletes with estimated earnings of $41 million in salary and endorsements as of June 2013. Those numbers will continue at least through 2018 as Messi’s contract is expected to pay out more than $20 million annually.
