Messi appears in court at tax fraud trial in Spain

Argentina and Barcelona football star Lionel Messi, one of the world’s highest-paid athletes, arrived Thursday at a Barcelona court to take the stand for the first time at his tax fraud trial in Spain.

The 28-year-old, who wore a black suit and tie, was cheered and jeered as he emerged from a van accompanied by his father Jorge Horacio Messi.
The two are accused of using a chain of fake companies in Belize and Uruguay to avoid paying taxes on 4.16 million euros ($4.6 million) of Messi’s income earned through the sale of his image rights from 2007-09.
Dozens of photographers and onlookers crowded behind metal barriers and a line of police that guarded the entrance of the court to catch a glimpse of the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.