SAO PAULO: Retired soccer star Ronaldinho and his brother are in jail in Paraguay after being accused of entering the country using fake passports. It was the latest in a string of incidents involving the 2002 World Cup winner and Barcelona icon, who officially retired in 2018 after several lackluster seasons.
Here is a look back at some of the issues the Brazilian has faced off the pitch in recent years.
PARAGUAYAN PASSPORT
Ronaldinho and his brother Roberto de Assis are jailed after they arrived in Asunción on Wednesday with fake passports. Their lawyer Sérgio Queiroz confirmed the documents were false, but argued they were a gift from a businessman, who has also been jailed.
Ronaldinho and Assis had said they went to Asunción for business reasons. It is unclear why the former footballer entered Paraguay using the passport considering Brazilians can enter the neighboring country using their national ID card. A local prosecutor told Brazilian media the former footballer will be investigated for other alleged crimes, but did not reveal what these were.
INSTITUTO RONALDINHO GAUCHO INVESTIGATION
The Instituto Ronaldinho Gaúcho (IRG), which was closed in the end of 2010, was investigated on two occasions due to allegedly irregular contracts with the Porto Alegre city hall. The first probe came in 2012, with city councillors claiming that more than $100,000 was paid to the educational institute led by Ronaldinho. That investigation ended after politicians decided there was no ill intent by the footballer and his brother in the case.
Three years later, state of Rio Grande do Sul prosecutors sought to open another case that was based on the 2012 probe, but this time they claimed the irregularities amounted to about $300,000. A judge later ruled there were no grounds to sentence the brothers.
ENVIRONMENTAL CRIME
Ronaldinho was fined for building an illegal fishing platform and dock on the shores of the Guaiba river in his hometown of Porto Alegre in 2015. He challenged the decision for years until a judge seized his passport, claiming he had to pay damages of about $2 million.
Despite not having his passport, Ronaldinho became a tourism ambassador for the administration of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro in September. Later, he paid the fine and had his documents returned.
CRYPTOCURRENCY
The former footballer has been under investigation since the start of the year because of his links with a cryptocurrency company called 18kRonaldinho, which promised lucrative returns. Victims told media the initiative was actually a pyramid scheme and demanded damages of more than $65 million from the company. Ronaldinho’s lawyer says he is not involved with it.
FAR-RIGHT SUPPORT
Barcelona distanced itself from its former star’s support of Bolsonaro, a fringe far-right congressman who rose to power in 2019. After the former footballer endorsed Bolsonaro, club spokesman Josep Vives said in a press conference in 2018 that Barcelona’s democratic values “do not coincide with the words we have heard from the candidate (Bolsonaro).”
Vives added that Barça supports freedom of speech, but Ronaldinho has been a less frequent attendee of club events since. He used to be paid about 100,000 euros for each appearance.
HUGE DEBTS
Newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported in July that Ronaldinho had multiple debts amounting to more than $2 million. At least four properties belonging to the former soccer star have been auctioned by a court in Rio Grande do Sul state.
Jailed Ronaldinho facing multiple issues off the pitch
https://arab.news/6r8dz
Jailed Ronaldinho facing multiple issues off the pitch
- Ronaldinho and his brother Roberto de Assis are jailed after they arrived in Asunción on Wednesday with fake passports
Football’s return to Syrian pitches brings fanfare — and friction
RIYADH: Just 10 days after the first anniversary of Syria’s Liberation Day, and one week after the historic performance of the country’s football team at the 2025 Arab Cup — where they reached the quarterfinals — domestic football returned as the Syrian Premier League kicked off its new season.
While league football has continued intermittently since a one-year suspension in 2011, this season represents a notable shift.
For the first time since 2017, the competition features 16 teams playing a full round-robin format — a return to structural normality after years of disrupted campaigns, withdrawals and operational challenges caused by conflict and deteriorating infrastructure.
Foreign players have also returned in significant numbers. A total of 25 overseas players are registered across the 16 clubs in what is now known as the “Prime TV” Syrian Premier League, following the broadcaster’s acquisition of domestic broadcasting rights for the season.
Yet despite the sense of renewal, the league’s reset has been far from smooth. Average attendances remain well below pre-war levels, while the season itself was delayed multiple times before eventually beginning in mid-December — a schedule that is now expected to extend deep into the summer months.
Concerns over facilities and fan safety have already sparked internal tension. The anticipated Matchday Two fixture between Tishreen and Hottin — also known as the Latakia Derby — was postponed by the Syrian Football Association until further notice. No official explanation was provided, but stadium readiness and crowd safety has been at the core of football discussion in Syria.
Supporters have also voiced their frustration over the newly announced ticket prices. Entry fees increased from 5,000 Syrian pounds ($0.45) to 15,000 SYP, a threefold rise announced by the SFA and widely cited as a factor behind subdued crowds.
Infrastructure remains a pressing issue. Historic venues such as Khalid Ibn Al-Walid Stadium in the city of Homs are still not cleared to host games due to pitch conditions and safety requirements, reinforcing the sense of uneven progress — advances made, but frequently offset by new obstacles.
Operational shortcomings were evident as early as the first game of the season. In the opening fixture between Al-Shorta and Hottin, a formal warning was issued to the former by the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee due to a breach in organizational arrangements for the match, including the failure to provide ball boys, which led to a five-minute delay to kick-off.
Political sensitivities have not been easy to navigate either. Al-Karamah were fined 1,500,000 SYP after fans directed verbal abuse at Al-Wahda player Milad Hamad, due to previous political posts made on his Facebook account.
Five days later, Al-Wahda announced Hamad’s suspension from all sporting activities pending review by the relevant committee at the SFA. “This decision comes in solidarity with all our beloved Syrian fans and as a reaffirmation of our commitment to the unity of our people and our land, and to the fact that the blood of our martyrs in the Syrian Revolution has not been shed in vain,” the club said in a statement posted via their official Facebook page.
Rebuilding a sustainable football system in Syria has proven complex. The league’s return has brought moments of excitement alongside renewed tension — a reminder that restoring domestic football is not simply about restarting competition, but about addressing the structures that support it. The Syrian Football Association was contacted for comment, but did not respond.
