Former Brazil international footballer Dani Alves, convicted of rape in Spain, has paid his bail of one million euros and can leave jail pending his appeal, a court said Monday.

One of the world’s most decorated footballers, Alves, 40, was last month sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail for raping a young woman in the VIP bathroom of a Barcelona nightclub in the early hours of December 31, 2022.

But in a surprise move, a Barcelona court agreed last Wednesday to his request for provisional release while his appeal is heard on condition that he posted bail of a million euros ($1.08 million), hand over his Spanish and Brazilian passports, remain in the country and present himself to court “on a weekly basis”.

More details on SportsDesk. 

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