A Spanish court on Wednesday sentenced Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti to a one-year prison term for tax fraud when he was Real Madrid manager in 2014.
The Madrid court also fined Ancelotti €386,000 ($452,187).
Spanish prosecutors accused Ancelotti of defrauding the state of 1 million euros ($1 million) in 2014 and 2015. State prosecutors sought a prison sentence of up to four years and nine months on two counts of tax fraud.
In March 2024, they accused Ancelotti of having used shell companies to hide his true earnings. Prosecutors claimed Ancelotti, for example, used one company that lacked “any real (economic) activity” in the Virgin Islands as part of an alleged scheme.
Carlos Sánchez, Ancelotti’s press officer, told The Associated Press that the coach “will not make comments for now.”
Brazil’s soccer confederation said in a statement that it was following the case.
The Italian coach is the latest in a string of major soccer profiles to face a crackdown by Spanish authorities over unpaid taxes, although none have actually been sent to prison so far. That list includes star players Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as Jose Mourinho, another former Madrid coach.
In Spain a judge can suspend a sentence of less than two years for first-time offenders.
Brazil’s soccer confederation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ancelotti, who turns 67 on Thursday, is one of soccer’s most successful coaches. He is the only coach to have won the Champions League five times, three with Madrid and twice with AC Milan, and the only coach to have won domestic league titles in England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.
Ancelotti left his second stint at Real Madrid to take over Brazil’s national team.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Close UK-France relationship a ‘game changer’ says Macron
Royal tour paintings from Charles’s personal collection go on display
Mapped: Where the third UK heatwave of the summer will hit
Temperatures to rise ‘day by day’ through the week, say Met Office
Hegseth left Trump in the dark when he paused Ukraine weapons shipments: report
Live updates: Texas flooding death toll and latest on Camp Mystic
