https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Spain in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Spanish tax authorities are investigating whether payments from FC Barcelona to Lionel Messi's foundation were used to help the player evade taxes, Spanish daily El Mundo reported on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.es/20180114/spanish-tax-authorities-scrutinise-messis-foundation Sun, 14 Jan 2018 11:40:40 +0100 spanish-tax-authorities-scrutinise-messis-foundation Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi says the worst possible draw for his Argentina side at next year's World Cup would be Spain in the first round. https://www.thelocal.es/20171109/messi-spain-would-be-worst-team-to-face-at-world-cup Thu, 09 Nov 2017 10:22:55 +0100 messi-spain-would-be-worst-team-to-face-at-world-cup FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi has donated the more than €72,000 in damages he won from a libel case against a newspaper to charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF). https://www.thelocal.es/20171103/lionel-messi-donates-72000-in-libel-damages-to-doctors-without-borders Fri, 03 Nov 2017 15:07:32 +0100 lionel-messi-donates-72000-in-libel-damages-to-doctors-without-borders A Spanish court said on Friday it had replaced Barcelona star Lionel Messi's prison sentences for tax fraud with fines. https://www.thelocal.es/20170708/football-messi-tax-fraud-sentence-reduced-to-fine Sat, 08 Jul 2017 13:17:19 +0200 football-messi-tax-fraud-sentence-reduced-to-fine Lionel Messi has agreed to stay at FC Barcelona until 2021 in a deal that all but commits the star striker to ending his top-flight career at the Spanish giants. Fernando Torres has also agreed to extend his stay at boyhood club Atletico Madrid. https://www.thelocal.es/20170706/messi-and-torres-sign-contract-extensions Thu, 06 Jul 2017 14:05:50 +0200 messi-and-torres-sign-contract-extensions Prosecutors in Barcelona say they are not against replacing football star Lionel Messi's 21-month jail sentence for tax fraud with a fine, a spokeswoman announced on Friday. https://www.thelocal.es/20170623/spanish-prosecutors-propose-replacing-messi-jail-term-with-fine Fri, 23 Jun 2017 13:05:45 +0200 spanish-prosecutors-propose-replacing-messi-jail-term-with-fine A Lionel Messi masterclass salvaged some silverware to end Barcelona's season and gave coach Luis Enrique a victorious send-off as the Catalans retained the Copa del Rey with a 3-1 win over Deportivo Alavés on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.es/20170528/messi-magic-inspires-bara-to-retain-copa-del-rey Sun, 28 May 2017 12:39:50 +0200 messi-magic-inspires-bara-to-retain-copa-del-rey Pictures of a five-year-old Lionel Messi fan in Afghanistan wearing a football shirt made from a plastic bag have gone viral. Now, the boy's hero is hoping to meet him. https://www.thelocal.es/20160201/messi-wants-to-meet-five-year-old-fan-in-plastic-bag-jersey Mon, 01 Feb 2016 13:42:47 +0100 messi-wants-to-meet-five-year-old-fan-in-plastic-bag-jersey A third Lionel Messi hat-trick in four games helped Barcelona keep the pressure on La Liga leaders Real Madrid as they recorded a 5-1 victory over local rivals Espanyol on Sunday. https://www.thelocal.es/20141208/magical-messi-scores-third-hat-trick-in-four-games Mon, 08 Dec 2014 11:17:00 +0100 magical-messi-scores-third-hat-trick-in-four-games Lionel Messi will continue to be Barcelona's leading light despite the Argentine superstar suffering a stream of criticism in recent weeks, the Spanish team's president said Saturday. https://www.thelocal.es/20140420/people-are-being-unfair-to-messi-barca-chief Sun, 20 Apr 2014 13:01:00 +0200 people-are-being-unfair-to-messi-barca-chief Rumours that the injured Lionel Messi may be eyeing an exit from Barcelona were slammed by the clubs president on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.es/20131212/messi-is-not-going-anywhere-barcelona Thu, 12 Dec 2013 19:45:00 +0100 messi-is-not-going-anywhere-barcelona Barcelona winger Pedro Rodriguez believes Lionel Messi's uncharacteristic La Liga goal drought is nothing to worry about ahead of his side's Champions League encounter with AC Milan on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.es/20131105/barcas-pedro-expecting-messi-magic-for-milan-clash Tue, 05 Nov 2013 10:19:00 +0100 barcas-pedro-expecting-messi-magic-for-milan-clash Fifa president Sepp Blatter's comments on Cristiano Ronaldo's demeanour have not only upset Real Madrid fans but also called into question the neutrality of the upcoming Ballon d’Or Awards. https://www.thelocal.es/20131029/fifa-boss-mocks-haircut-king-ronaldo Tue, 29 Oct 2013 17:18:00 +0100 fifa-boss-mocks-haircut-king-ronaldo The case involving Barcelona star Lionel Messi and his father on tax evasion charges has been delayed until September 27th, a court statement confirmed on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.es/20130910/messi-tax-fraud-trial-hits-delay-hurdle Tue, 10 Sep 2013 19:47:05 +0200 messi-tax-fraud-trial-hits-delay-hurdle Barcelona football star Lionel Messi has been named as a suspect in a tax fraud probe and summoned to appear in court, a spokesman for the public prosecutor's office in Barcelona said on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.es/20130620/messi-to-face-court-over-tax-fraud-claims Thu, 20 Jun 2013 17:10:00 +0200 messi-to-face-court-over-tax-fraud-claims Barcelona's Xavi Hernandez has said he expects superstar Lionel Messi will be fit for Tuesday's Champions League semi-final, first leg at Bayern Munich, despite the Argentine labouring with a hamstring injury. https://www.thelocal.es/20130423/messi-will-be-barcas-key-in-munich-xavi Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:04:00 +0200 messi-will-be-barcas-key-in-munich-xavi Barcelona survived a huge scare from Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday after the World Player of the Year helped guide the Spanish giants past Paris and into the semi-finals of the Champions League. https://www.thelocal.es/20130411/barca-hail-supersub-messi-after-psg-scare Thu, 11 Apr 2013 10:40:11 +0200 barca-hail-supersub-messi-after-psg-scare The Catalan giants silenced doubters by progressing through to the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday, after an inspired performance saw them thrash AC Milan 4-0 to overturn a 2-0 first-leg defeat. https://www.thelocal.es/20130313/barca-end-doubts-with-epic-comeback Wed, 13 Mar 2013 11:00:00 +0100 barca-end-doubts-with-epic-comeback AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri insisted on Monday that his team would need to be even better than in the first leg to go through to the Champions League quarter finals at Barcelona's expense. https://www.thelocal.es/20130312/ac-milan-coach-wary-of-barca-at-home Tue, 12 Mar 2013 11:13:00 +0100 ac-milan-coach-wary-of-barca-at-home