Spanish judges handed Carlo Ancelotti a one year prison sentence for dodging taxes back in 2014. The Real Madrid legend created fake companies to hide his extra cash while managing the famous football club. Courts say the Italian mastermind cheated Spain out of more than one million euros through sneaky image rights deals. Prosecutors wanted nearly five years behind bars for the 66 year old coach. Ancelotti walked away without serving actual jail time because he has no criminal record and got less than two years.
The Brazil manager denied planning any fraud during his high profile trial last April. He claimed he never realized his salary setup would help him pay less tax money to Spanish authorities. Judges refused to buy his innocent act and found him guilty of deliberately hiding income through shady offshore companies. The court slammed his actions as blatantly fraudulent with no real business purpose. Officials cleared him of fraud charges for 2015 because they could not prove he lived in Spain that year.
Ancelotti joins a growing list of football superstars who got caught cheating on their Spanish taxes. Jose Mourinho received a suspended sentence after admitting guilt in 2019 for similar crimes. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo both faced tax evasion convictions but avoided prison as first time offenders. The legendary manager left Real Madrid recently to take over Brazil after a disappointing season without trophies.
The Brazil manager denied planning any fraud during his high profile trial last April. He claimed he never realized his salary setup would help him pay less tax money to Spanish authorities. Judges refused to buy his innocent act and found him guilty of deliberately hiding income through shady offshore companies. The court slammed his actions as blatantly fraudulent with no real business purpose. Officials cleared him of fraud charges for 2015 because they could not prove he lived in Spain that year.
Ancelotti joins a growing list of football superstars who got caught cheating on their Spanish taxes. Jose Mourinho received a suspended sentence after admitting guilt in 2019 for similar crimes. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo both faced tax evasion convictions but avoided prison as first time offenders. The legendary manager left Real Madrid recently to take over Brazil after a disappointing season without trophies.
