Ex-Barcelona & Brazil star Dani Alves found guilty of rape, sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison

Former Barcelona and Brazil right-back Dani Alves has reportedly been found guilty of raping a woman in a nightclub and has now been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison.

The 40-year-old denied the allegations of sexual assault that had been made against him, but it now seems he’s set to serve jail time after a court ruled him guilty after the incident that has been alleged to take place back in 2022.

This is according to BBC News, who add that Alves can appeal the sentence, but this is certainly looking pretty damning for the Brazilian, who enjoyed a great career on the pitch, becoming one of the most decorated players of the modern game.

Alves was a world class performer during his peak years at Barca, having also shone in spells at other big clubs such as Sevilla, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus. In total, he won nine league titles in Europe, along with three Champions League titles during his eight years at the Nou Camp. He also won well over 100 caps for Brazil, with whom he twice won Copa America.

Evidence points towards Dani Alves rape

The BBC report explains that evidence suggests Alves did not have any evidence of the woman in question consenting, and so they ruled that her testimony, along with over evidence, seemed to make it clear she had been raped by the former footballer.

There have unfortunately been numerous other high-profile cases similar to this in recent times, with Manchester United’s Mason Greenwood perhaps the biggest name other than Alves to make headlines for all the wrong reasons, though charges against the forward, currently out on loan at La Liga side Getafe, were eventually dropped.

There have also been some very serious allegations made against former Man Utd and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo as detailed in a report by Der Spiegel.