Messi and father to face tax fraud trial
BARCELONA • Argentina and Barcelona star Lionel Messi and his father Jorge are to stand trial on three counts of tax fraud that could carry prison sentences, a Spanish court confirmed yesterday.
In a court filing, the judge in charge of the case rejected the request of the public prosecutor to try only the footballer's father.
The pair were accused in 2013 of defrauding the taxman out of €4.16 million (S$6.62 million) in taxes related to Messi's image rights between 2007 and 2009 through the creation of fake companies in Belize and Uruguay.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Wada figures reveal extent of doping
LONDON • At least one in every 100 athletes is likely to be doping, according to figures released by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada), which also show that football carried out more drug tests than any other sport last year.
Of the 283,304 urine and blood samples submitted to Wada's 32 approved laboratories in 2014, more than 31,000 were from footballers, 144 of which tested positive, mainly for banned stimulants and anti-inflammatories.
After football, which has more professional players than other sports, the busiest drug-testers work in athletics (25,830 samples taken), cycling (22,471) and aquatics (12,120).
THE TIMES, LONDON
Ademi tests positive after Arsenal game
ZAGREB • Dinamo Zagreb midfielder Arijan Ademi failed a drug test after their Champions League game against Arsenal and is under investigation by Uefa, the football club said on Wednesday.
Dinamo beat Arsenal 2-1 in their Group F opener on Sept 16, before losing 0-5 at Bayern Munich two weeks later.
REUTERS
