Barcelona star Lionel Messi and his father can avoid prison for tax fraud by paying an extra fine, a Spanish court said Friday.
Instead of Messi serving his 21-month sentence, the Argentina forward will be fined an extra €252,000 ($394,600).
The Barcelona-based court also ruled that Messi's father, Jorge Horacio Messi, will be fined an extra €180,000 ($281,830) instead of serving his 15-month sentence.
The ruling was widely expected in Spain, where prison sentences under 24 months for first-time offenders can be waived by a judge.
Last year, a court found Messi and his father each guilty of three counts of defrauding tax authorities of 4.1 million euros ($6.4 million) from 2007-09.