Ronaldo arrives at court to testify on tax fraud charges

Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo, accused of evading 14.7m euros ($17.3m) in taxes, arrived at the Pozuelo de Alarcon court on Monday to testify. The 32-year-old Portuguese has denied all the allegations through his agents.

Cristiano Ronaldo will appear in a Spanish court today, but he says his "conscience is clear".https://t.co/crzKhwp0HY pic.twitter.com/YL6KBkrOAs

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 31, 2017

If found guilty of hiding earnings from his image rights between 2011 and 2014, Ronaldo would face a large fine and a possible custodial sentence.

Cristiano Ronaldo arrives at Spanish court to face judge over £13m tax fraud probe https://t.co/c10GILYxQ8 pic.twitter.com/H5JY5Ah8qh— MailOnline Sport (@MailSport) July 31, 2017

Spanish courts have recently cracked down on tax evasion among leading footballers.

Soccer star Ronaldo finds himself in court over tax fraud claims https://t.co/QxGppLO9fZ pic.twitter.com/c4RPpQlMLy

— Bloomberg (@business) July 31, 2017

Barcelona’s Lionel Messi was handed a 21-month prison sentence this year on similar charges, although he is unlikely to serve any time in jail because Spanish law states that a sentence of under two years can be served as probation.