With Dani Alves having been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for sexual assault, we took a look at several other high-profile footballers who spent time in jail, including a former Orlando Pirates star.
Dani Alves
On Thursday morning, Alves was handed a sentence of more than four years behind bars after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022. This incident happened just weeks after he became the oldest Brazilian footballer ever to play at a FIFA World Cup after his appearance at the showpiece in Qatar.
The 40-year-old has already spent more than a year in prison awaiting trial as he was denied bail after being deemed a flight risk.
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Patrick Phungwayo
A number of South African stars have also found themselves spending time in the custody of correctional services, with former Pirates player Patrick Phungwayo having been arrested in 2021 and imprisoned by the Hawks for his alleged involvement in hijacking, armed robbery, and housebreaking.
It is believed the incident is not his only run-in with the law, with Goal reporting that, in 2017, he faced charges of attempted murder and pointing a firearm at a man in Spruitview, east of Johannesburg.
Thulani Cele
The former AmaZulu FC footballer was imprisoned for 18 months in Georgia for allegedly stealing a cellphone. In 2023, following his release, his aunt, Nonhlanhla Shongwe, told Isolezwe: "He has been released from jail. He has served his sentence. We are happy about his release as a family. We've been waiting for this day for a long time."
Speaking to SA FM, she also said: "There was no force or robbery, as they claimed. He returned the phone, even the owner of the phone confirmed this. Also, there was a language barrier during the case which could have affected the matters."
His agent, Sipho Joyisi, recently revealed to Soccer Laduma that plans are underway to get the player back to action as he remains a free agent.
Ronaldinho
The FC Barcelona icon's various encounters with the law are well-documented. In 2020, he was detained in a prison in Paraguay for allegedly entering the country using a fake passport.
According to FourFourTwo, the Selecao legend spent about five months in jail but later revealed that his time was slightly more eventful than he had expected.
"I thought they were going to beat me up and do all the terrible stuff they usually do in jail," he said, according to GiveMeSport. "But instead, they called the guards to bring a football so I can do some tricks and entertain them."
Benjamin Mendy
The Frenchman spent four months in custody after being arrested on several charges of rape and sexual assault in 2020, according to Manchester Evening News.
In January last year, however, he was found not guilty of raping four women and sexually assaulting another during parties he hosted at his Cheshire mansion.
In November 2023, the now-Lorient FC star sued his former club Manchester City for about £10 million (R241 million) in unpaid wages, per Goal.
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