Football Star
Former Brazil football star Dani Alves has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison by a Spanish court for the rape of a young woman at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022.
The court also imposed five years of probation after serving the jail term and ordered Alves to pay €150,000 ($162,000) in compensation to the victim.
The judges stated, “The victim did not consent, and there is evidence that permits the rape to be considered proven.” Prosecutors had sought a nine-year jail term followed by 10 years of probation.
Alves, who denies the charges and claims the encounter was consensual, plans to appeal the ruling. His lawyer stated that they were disappointed with the verdict and would fight it in the higher courts.
During the trial, Alves’ defense argued that he was drunk at the time of the incident, while the prosecution described the encounter as violent and non-consensual. The court found injuries on the victim’s knees, attributing them to the violence used by Alves.
Spain’s leftist government passed the “only yes means yes” law in 2022, strengthening the country’s penal code against rape by requiring explicit consent for sexual acts.
Alves initially denied knowing the woman in a TV interview but later admitted to having consensual sex with her, explaining that he had lied initially out of fear his wife would leave him.
The player has been in detention since his arrest in January 2023. Alves, one of football’s most decorated players, won numerous trophies during his career, playing for clubs like Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.
