Cristiano Ronaldo salary: Real Madrid star earned £190million last year as his tax return shows
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CRISTIANO RONALDO'S management company has published financial records showing that the Real Madrid superstar declared an income of over £190million in 2015.
The move comes amidst accusations of tax evasion after a data leak contained documents that said Ronaldo hid £126m in image rights in the British Virgin Islands since 2009.
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Gestifute, the agency run by super agent Jorge Mendes, who represents Ronaldo, released his tax form online, claiming it was previously supplied to Spanish tax officials.
The document says that Ronaldo declared just under £20m of income earned from inside Spain, with over £170m made outside of Spain.
While it did not show how much tax the Portuguese forward paid, an accompanying statement said it showed his willingness to cooperate with authorities.
The statement said: "This document confirms that Spain's Tax Agency is knowledgeable of all of Cristiano Ronaldo's assets and income. From now on, the player will not make any further statement on this subject.
"As reported in recent days, the player has been aware of his tax obligations right away from the beginning of his professional career in all of the countries in which he has resided, and has not and has never had any issue with the tax authorities of any of those countries.
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"This communication, which was not required by law, constitutes irrefutable proof that Cristiano Ronaldo and his representatives are in good faith and cooperate with the authorities in a spirit of transparency and compliance with legality."
It comes amid the revelation that Spanish authorities have been looking into Ronaldo’s alleged tax fraud for the last 18 MONTHS.
Gestifute have strongly denied the claims and published documents that they believe prove his innocence.
But Spanish newspaper , who initially broke the news, has revealed that investigations into the Portuguese ace are now at an "advanced" stage.
Ronaldo has now signed a new deal at the Bernabeu worth £43m per year until 2021. He also has a lifetime contract with Nike worth a whopping £1billion and owns two hotels. His business interests include an underwear brand and his own shampoo. His sponsorship deals include Armani, Tag Heuer and Castrol.
He is the best paid sports star in the world. His net worth is estimated between £210m and £230m and his various deals and investments could see him become football's first billionaire.
Ronaldo spoke briefly about his financial situation on Wednesday after Real Madrid's Champions League game against Dortmund, telling Portuguese TV station RTP, "You believe I am worried? He who owes nothing, fears nothing."
Earlier this week, Madrid had come to his defence, saying Ronaldo deserves "the maximum respect."