As Cristiano Ronaldo tops Forbes list of highest-paid and richest athlete in the world , the Real Madrid forward has been accused of tax evasion and defrauding Spain’s tax office of €14.7 million in unpaid taxes from 2011 to 2014.

The accusation was leveled by a Spanish state prosecutor in a statement released on Tuesday which said the 32-year old “took advantage of a business structure created in 2010 to hide from fiscal authorities income generated in Spain from image rights.”
It clearly noted that Ronaldo used what it deems a shell company in the Virgin Islands to “create a screen in order to hide his total income from Spain’s Tax Office.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s agency had previously rubbished any suggestion of tax evasion when they said that he was up to date on his taxes and last month, tax officials said he adjusted his tax declarations and paid an extra €6 million in 2014, according to KWESE.
Ronaldo was named FIFA’s best player in the world for the fourth time, secured a contract extension with Real Madrid that will pay him more than $50 million for each of the next four years through his 36th birthday and inked a lifetime deal with Nike worth upward of $1 billion.

According to Forbes, Ronaldo earns $93 million annually ($7.75 million per month). Hence, the footballer said he was not losing sleep over the possibility of being charged for tax evasion.
In his words in an interview with El Chiringuito TV before the Champions League final, Ronaldo expressed optimism that the matter (about the tax evasion) will be resolved in the best possible means.

“I am very relaxed about it — the truth is I’m very, very relaxed. I know that these things can be resolved with the best decisions.

“So I am good. I can say [that] from the depth of my heart,” Ronaldo said looking straight into the camera.
“When you do things well you can go to bed feeling relaxed. And I sleep well always, always. So I am good, and only thinking about the Champions League final.”

But CR7 is not the only one to be hit with a tax evasion case in recent times. The same was the case with Argentina international and Barcelona forward, Lionel Messi who was sentenced to a 21-month jail sentence and 2.09-million-euro fine in 201 for tax fraud.

But Spanish laws waved the prison sentence since it was a first-time offense and non-violent crime. Rather, Messi was ordered to pay a fine of £1.7 million after being found guilty, though this was over a reported £3.19 million hidden away from Spanish tax authorities.
Hopefully, the lawsuit brought against the champion can also be resolved easily without affecting his net worth and world ranking.

Source http://www.nairaguideblog.com.ng/2017/06/ristiano-ronaldo-under-fire-for-tax.html?m=1