Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo is due in court in Spain today to answer charges of evading taxes during his nine-year reign as Spanish side Real Madrid's all-time highest scorer.
The Portuguese striker is expected to plead guilty after he struck a deal last year with authorities in Spain to settle the case by paying $30 million and accepting a suspended jail sentence.
The 33-year-old Juventus forward is unlikely to serve any time in jail, as the 23-month term prosecutors have requested is within a two-year threshold that can be served on probation for a first offence under Spanish law.
Cristiano Ronaldo Photo: Photosport
Ronaldo asked for special security measures for accessing the court, but the request was denied, a Madrid judge said in a statement. Spanish media reported he had asked to be allowed to enter the courtroom via the car park.
Officials say the hearing will be short, and only require Ronaldo to confirm he accepts the deal.
Earlier this month police in Las Vegas issued a warrant for a DNA sample from Ronaldo as part of their investigation into the rape allegations made against the Juventus forward.
Ronaldo denies assaulting Kathryn Mayorga at a Las Vegas hotel in 2009.
Der Spiegel said that in 2010, she reportedly reached an out-of-court settlement with Ronaldo involving a $375,000 (£288,000) payment for agreeing never to go public with the allegations.
Her lawyers are now seeking to declare the non-disclosure agreement void.
Ronaldo's lawyer has previously said his client does not deny entering an agreement but that "the reasons that led him to do so are at least to be distorted".
Ronaldo moved to Juventus from Real Madrid for £99.2m in July. He has won the Ballon d'Or - awarded to the world's best footballer - in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017.
The Portuguese international has previously dismissed the allegation as "fake news" and earlier in October issued a statement through his Twitter account in which he "firmly" denied the accusation.
-Reuters/BBC
