Offshore Leaks Record

Argentina · Panama Papers

Lionel Messi: offshore leaks and what happened next

No official action reported No confirmed official action arising from the Panama Papers disclosure of Mega Star Enterprises was found in the sources reviewed. Separately, Messi's Spanish tax fraud conviction for 2007 to 2009, in a case that predates the leak, was upheld by the Supreme Court in May 2017.3,4,6

Being named in a leak is not evidence of wrongdoing, and owning an offshore company can be legal. Each record sets out what was reported, the person's response, and what official action, if any, followed.

What was reported

ICIJ reported that Messi and his father were owners of a Panama company, Mega Star Enterprises Inc., and noted that his offshore dealings were already the target of a tax evasion case in Spain.1

Response

The Messi family said Mega Star Enterprises was a fully inactive company that never had funds or bank accounts, EFE reported.2

What happened afterwards

  1. Court ruled, Supreme Court of Spain, Criminal ChamberIn a case that began before the Panama Papers and concerned image rights income routed through companies in Belize and Uruguay, not Mega Star Enterprises, a Barcelona court convicted Messi of tax fraud in July 2016, CIPER reported. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction on three counts for 2007 to 2009, confirming a 21 month sentence and a fine of just over 2 million euros, and reduced his father's sentence to 15 months, Reuters reported. This case is separate from the Panama Papers disclosure.3,5

Sources

  1. ICIJ, Giant Leak of Offshore Financial Records Exposes Global Array of Crime and Corruption (3 April 2016)
  2. Ultima Hora (EFE), La familia Messi dice que nunca han usado la sociedad panameña (EFE) (4 April 2016)
  3. Legal Today (Reuters), El Supremo confirma la condena de 21 meses de prisión a Messi por fraude fiscal (Reuters) (25 May 2017)
  4. Diário de Notícias, Messi investigado por operações suspeitas depois da sentença (20 June 2018)
  5. CIPER, Papeles de Panamá: lo que hicieron asesores de Messi y el presidente de Argentina tras las revelaciones de 2016 (27 June 2018)
  6. Diario Uno, Investigan a Messi por operación sospechosa en cuenta offshore de Panamá (20 June 2018)