Former Brazilian soccer star Dani Alves was sentenced to four and a half years in prison after being found guilty of raping a woman in a nightclub in 2022.
Spain's top court in Catalonia decided on the sentence on Thursday following a three-day trial earlier this month where the 40-year-old former Barcelona star was found guilty of the December '22 crime.
The woman testified at trial that after dancing with Alves at a New Year's Eve party, they went to the bathroom, but she decided she wanted to leave ... that's when she said she was raped.
As for the 4 1/2 year punishment, the court said, "the sentence considers that it has been proven that the victim did not consent and that there is evidence, in addition to the testimony of the plaintiff, to consider the rape proven."
Alves will also have to pay a near-$163k fine to the victim.
It's not nearly the sentence length prosecutors were hoping for ... they wanted Alves thrown behind bars for 9 years. The victim was hoping for even more.
Despite the sentence, the victim's lawyer, David Saenz said they were happy the court acknowledged "that the victim was telling the truth and that she suffered."
Alves initially denied any wrongdoing, claiming he didn't know the woman, but later changed his story several times.
After biological evidence was presented, Alves admitted he had sex with the woman, insisting it was consensual ... saying he only lied because he was married.
Alves' lawyer Ines Guardiola continued to insist her client's innocent, announcing they'd appeal.
"I still believe in Dani Alves' innocence. We haven't read the whole sentence yet because it's very long, but we are going to study it in detail now. We defend [Alves'] innocence."
Before the arrest, Alves was considered one of the best defensive players of all time ... and spent time with Barcelona, Juventus, and Paris-Saint Germain during his 20-year career.
He has won major titles, including an Olympic gold medal and two Copa Americas for Brazil.