Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, accused of evading €14.7 million ($16.5m) in tax, has been summoned to appear before a judge in Spain, judicial sources said on Tuesday.
The 32-year-old Portuguese star is facing four charges of fraud through offshore companies between 2011 and 2014.
The hearing will take place at 09:00 GMT on July 31 in a court at Pozuelo de Alarcón, in the suburbs of Madrid, according to Spanish press reports. Prosecutors accuse Ronaldo, who is the world’s highest paid athlete according to Forbes magazine, of evading tax via two companies based in the British Virgin Islands and Ireland.
The four-time world player of the year who said last week his “conscience is clear” is threatening to leave Real Madrid over the affair. Ronaldo is currently on duty for Portugal at the Confederations Cup in Russia which ends on July 2.