BARCELONA, Spain—A Spanish court on Tuesday acquitted soccer star Neymar and his fellow defendants in a fraud and corruption trial related to the Brazilian’s 2013 transfer from Santos to Barcelona.
Brazilian company DIS had accused Neymar, his father, and the former presidents of Santos and Barcelona of having intentionally hidden the cost of his transfer to avoid paying DIS what it was due as the partial holder of his player rights.
However, the court said in a statement that “it has not been proven that there was a false contract or that DIS was intended to be harmed.”
The verdict is not a surprise following the decision by Spanish state prosecutors to drop all charges during the trial. That left only the lawyers of DIS to continue arguing their case….