Barcelona Court Acquits Dani Alves In Sexual Assault Case

A Spanish court has overturned the conviction of former Barcelona footballer Dani Alves, who was previously found guilty of sexual assault.

In February 2024, Alves was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for allegedly raping a woman at a nightclub in December 2022. However, he denied any wrongdoing throughout the trial.

On Friday, the court ruled that there was “insufficient evidence” to uphold the conviction, maintaining Alves’s right to be presumed innocent.

This case was the first high-profile trial under Spain’s 2022 sexual consent law, known as the “only yes means yes” law. The law defines consent as an explicit agreement, meaning silence or inaction does not count as consent.

The appeals court in Barcelona, consisting of four judges, ruled unanimously to overturn the conviction. The judges pointed out that the woman’s testimony “differed notably” from video footage recorded before she and Alves entered the restroom, where she claimed he forced her into non-consensual sex.

Alves, now 41, was jailed from January 2023 until March 2024, when he was granted bail after paying $1.2 million. As part of his bail conditions, he surrendered his passports. Prosecutors had opposed his release, arguing that he posed a flight risk.

While prosecutors had sought to extend Alves’s prison sentence to nine years, the victim’s lawyer had demanded a 12-year sentence. However, the court’s decision to overturn the conviction could now be challenged at Spain’s Supreme Court in Madrid.

Dani Alves is one of the most decorated footballers of his generation. He has won multiple trophies with top clubs like Barcelona, Juventus, and Paris Saint-Germain. He also helped Brazil secure two Copa America titles and an Olympic gold medal at the age of 38.

Alves was playing for Mexican club Pumas when he was arrested, leading to the immediate termination of his contract.

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