Neymar has been "found guilty of tax evasion and ordered to pay back" £36.3M ($52.4M) by a court in Rio, Folha reported, according to Pete Jenson of the London DAILY MAIL. He will appeal the fine, which refers to around £11M in "undeclared earnings" from former club Santos, Barcelona and his main sponsor Nike from '12-14. The player is accused of using "simulated image rights contracts between three companies set up by himself and his parents" to pay less tax than he would have had he "declared the lucrative contracts as his personal earnings." The investigation in Brazil has "run parallel to two more fraud probes." The one in Spain is based on accusations that Barcelona "did not declare the full cost of Neymar when they signed him from Santos, instead disguising part of his transfer fee as other transactions." A related complaint by Brazilian investment fund DIS claims that "if indeed" Neymar’s transfer was for more than the £44M Barcelona claimed, it is "owed money from the sale" because it owned 40% of the player’s rights. If Neymar’s appeal fails "he should find the fine easier to pay after a massive pay-hike" from Barça due to him at the end of the season (DAILY MAIL, 3/20).
