Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti could face a jail term of four years and nine months after Spanish authorities accused him of tax fraud to the tune of more than €1m (£854,000).
Prosecutors have alleged that Ancelotti did not pay tax on his income from image rights during his first spell in charge of Real between 2013 and 2015.
Instead they say he channelled the money to both the club and an "undetermined" company domiciled in London named Vapia LLP.
An indictment states that Ancelotti failed to pay tax of €381,361 (£325,821) in 2014 and €675,718 (£577,309) in 2015 and he “omitted all income corresponding to the exploitation of his image rights.”
The Madrid Provincial Prosecutors’ Office said Ancelotti was "simulating" the transfer of his image rights to entities "lacking real activity" in other countries “so that neither he himself nor any of said companies would have to pay taxes on the large amounts received in Spain or abroad.”
There has not yet been any official comment from Ancelotti and no trial date has yet been set.
Ancelotti, 64, is the only coach to have won the Champions League four times, twice with Madrid and twice with AC Milan, and he is the only coach to have won domestic league titles in England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.
A host of big names in Spanish football have been implicated in tax scandals in recent years.
Former Chelsea and Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho received a one-year suspended sentence after reaching a guilty plea for tax fraud in 2019 relating to his time in charge of Real. Cristiano Ronaldo agreed to pay a fine of nearly €19m (£16.2m) in 2019, and was handed a two-year suspended sentence.
Lionel Messi and his father were found guilty of defrauding tax authorities of €4.1m (£3.5m) on income made from image rights but they also avoided a jail sentence by paying hefty fines. Spanish law states that a judge can suspend a sentence of less than two years for first-time offenders.
News of Ancelotti's tax issues broke while he was preparing Real for Wednesday night's Champions League round of 16 second leg against RB Leipzig at the Santiago Bernabeu. Real Madrid won the first leg 1-0 in Germany with Brahim Diaz scoring having started in place of the injured Jude Bellingham.
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