Footballer Dani Alves begins Barcelona trial for rape

BARCELONA: Brazilian footballer Dani Alves, a former star at Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain, goes on trial on Monday (Feb 5) in Barcelona accused of raping a woman in a local nightclub.

Prosecutors are asking for a nine-year prison sentence, followed by 10 years of conditional liberty. They are also asking that he pay €150,000 (US$162,000) in compensation to the woman.

The trial opens at 9am GMT and is due to wrap up on Wednesday.

The 40-year-old former defender has been in jail since his arrest in January 2023 after a woman accused him of raping her in a bathroom of the VIP area of the upscale Sutton nightclub in Barcelona in the early hours of Dec 31, 2022.

Alves has said they had consensual sex after initially denying knowing the woman during a television interview.

According to the prosecution, Alves - who was on holiday in Barcelona at the time after playing for Brazil at the World Cup in Qatar - offered champagne to the young woman and her friend.

Alves then allegedly invited the woman to enter a small enclosure at the nightclub, which she says she did not know was a lavatory.

Once inside, the footballer showed a "violent attitude" and forced her to have intercourse despite her resistance, prosecutors say, according to the indictment.

"The victim asked him several times to let her go, saying she wanted to leave but the defendant prevented her from doing so," according to the indictment, which describes a "situation of anguish and terror" for the young woman.

The woman, who received medical treatment after leaving the nightclub, is being treated for post-traumatic stress, according to prosecutors.

Alves' legal team lost a battle to keep the trial behind closed doors, though media and the public will not be present when the