Lionel Messi has been sentenced to 21 months in prison by the Spanish supreme court, but in all likelihood will not be going to prison.
Spanish newspaper El Pais says the court ratified an earlier sentence conferred by a regional tribunal in Barcelona, and found Messi guilty of defrauding Spain's ministry of finance of €4.1m.
The Argentinian maestro was found guilty of three financial crimes relating to his earnings in the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. The court found that Messi had failed to pay tax on image rights worth €10.1m within this period.
Messi's father received the same sentence, with both men given seven months jail for each of the three years their crimes were committed.
Both men are likely to avoid actually going to jail, however, as in Spain, sentences under two years are generally suspended unless the guilty party has committed a prior offence.
