Soccer star Dani Alves to go to trial for alleged sexual assault

A Spanish court says that Brazilian soccer player Dani Alves will face trial over an alleged sexual assault at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022, according to Reuters.

Reuters reports that Alves has been imprisoned in Barcelona since his arrest in January.

No court date has yet been set, but if Alves is found guilty, he faces a minimum of four years and up to 15 years in prison, Reuters reports.

The former FC Barcelona defender has maintained that he had consensual sex with his accuser, per Reuters.

Following Tuesday’s announcement, CNN reached out to Alves’ lawyer who has yet to respond.

CNN also reached out to Mexico’s UNAM – the club Alves was playing for at the time of the alleged sexual assault – for comment but did not immediately hear back.

Alves is one of the most decorated soccer players of his generation, having won domestic titles in Spain, Italy and France.

He also won three Champions League titles with Barça and won the Copa América with Brazil in 2007 and 2019.

At 39 years old, he became Brazil’s oldest player to feature at the World Cup while appearing for the national team in Qatar 2022 when his team played Cameroon.

CNN’s Sammy Mncwabe, Patrick Sung and Pau Mosquera contributed to this report.

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