Lionel Messi has yet to fully put his tax problems with the Spanish government behind him. An appeal made by Messi's lawyers has been turned down and he is set to face trial over €4 million tax fraud. It is alleged that Messi and his father had used companies in Belize and Uruguay to avoid Spanish tax obligations for image rights between 2007-09.
Messi and his father have denied the allegations but authorities are forcing them to stand trial despite the fact that they already made a payment of €5 million last year. The payment was thought to be the sum of the unpaid taxes plus interest and was made in the hope that Messi would not have to appear in a Barcelona court.
However, that now appears not to be the case and the Argentina star will in fact stand trial in the near future.
