Former Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti has been sentenced to a year in prison by a Spanish court for tax evasion — but he will not have to serve time in jail.

The current Barazil boss was accused of failing to pay €1M (£830,000) in tax on his salary during his first spell in charge of Real Madrid from 2013 to 2015. He will avoid prison but does have to pay a fine of €386,361.93  (£333,045.92).

Under Spanish law, any sentence under 2 years for a non-violent crime rarely requires a defendant without previous convictions to serve jail time.

Ancelotti said he was offered a net salary of €6M (£5.1M) by Real and that he left the structure of it to his financial advisers.

"I thought it was quite normal because at that time all the players and the previous coach had [done the same]," he said. Ancelotti paid back the debt in full in December 2021.

Reader Comments (10)

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Brent Stephens
1 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:39:15
Wow, prison sentence for Carlo!
Brent Stephens
2 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:41:51
But prison sentence suspended.
Danny O'Neill
3 Posted 09/07/2025 at 17:42:09
Yes Brent, 12 months.

But he won't go to prison. He pays a fine instead.

Brendan McLaughlin
4 Posted 09/07/2025 at 21:21:57
Carlo and his "get out" clauses.

If he ever does "I'm a Celebrity"... I'd back him heavily to be first out.

Colin Glassar
5 Posted 09/07/2025 at 21:36:34
He’s in a good place - Brazil. Ronnie Biggs would tell you that.
Si Cooper
6 Posted 09/07/2025 at 21:42:41
Hang on. Am I reading that right? He paid what he owed in 2021 but still got prosecuted?

I understand that tax evasion is a crime but I doubt that Ancelotti was actually the one who organised whatever mechanism was used to try to keep it away from the tax people.

Kieran Kinsella
7 Posted 09/07/2025 at 22:06:11
This seems to have all the time in Spain with the likes of Shakira and Messi recently. Either the tax system is highly complex or they have some dodgy accountants. Maybe both!
Kieran Kinsella
8 Posted 09/07/2025 at 22:08:41
That said could be interesting with the world cup in the USA and entry visa restrictions for crimes:

1. Crimes That May Make You Inadmissible:
Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude (CIMT):
This is a broad category that includes offenses involving dishonesty, fraud, or serious harm to another person. Examples include theft, fraud, assault, and some drug offenses.

Michael Kenrick
9 Posted 09/07/2025 at 22:10:56
There's a bit more detail and better explanation in this article at The Athletic [£]:

Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti sentenced to one year in prison over tax offence

They charged him in 2020 for failing to pay tax on image rights in 2014 and 2015. The prosecutor wanted a prison sentence of 4 years and 9 months, as well as a fine of €3.2M. But they were unable to prove that Ancelotti had stayed long enough in Spain in 2015 to incur tax liabilities, as he moved to London in May that year after being sacked by Real Madrid.

The charges related to earnings from Ancelotti’s image rights during his first stint as Madrid head coach in 2014 and 2015, with the allegation that the Italian had failed to include the relevant income in his tax returns, despite declaring himself as a tax resident in Spain and listing his residence as Madrid.

It was clarified on the first day of proceedings held in April that Ancelotti had since paid his €1.5m debt to the Spanish tax authorities in 2021. Ancelotti had decided to testify in court after saying he would not attempt to strike a deal with the prosecution.

Derek Thomas
10 Posted 09/07/2025 at 23:30:41
First Partey, now Ancelotti, just after they leave - how convenient.

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