Cristiano Ronaldo handed two years in prison, 18.8m euro fine in tax evasion case

Portuguese skipper and Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has reached a deal with Spanish tax authorities to serve a two years in prison and pay a fine of 18.8 million euro in a tax evasion case on Friday.

However, the five time Ballon d’Or winner is unlikely to serve any kind of jail time as Spanish law states that a sentence of under two years for a first offense could be served on probation.

The 33-year-old former Manchester United star is accused of evading 14.7 million euros in taxes.

The Spanish tax agency declined to comment on the issue.

Spanish courts have recently tracked on tax evasion among top footballers.

Argentina and Barcelona star Lionel Messi was earlier handed a 21-month prison term in 2017 but was able to exchange the penalty for a fine under Spanish law.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a fabulous hattrick to hand Portugal a crucial draw against Spain in the opening game of Group B for both the teams.