When Dani Alves was convicted of rape and sentenced to four and a half years’ imprisonment last month, his entry was removed from the section dedicated to Barcelona’s “legendary players” on the club’s website.
A few days later, however, the section on Alves reappeared.
“His extrovert character made him an idol of Barcelona fans and the perfect entertainer at any Blaugrana party.”
This can still be read on that particular page today (in the Spanish language version).
Alves, 40, was a great footballer and was much loved by Barca supporters. That is a fact that nobody can take away from him. But he is also a convicted rapist, and nobody can take that away from him either.
That description of the Brazilian — extroverted, an entertainer at any party — might well have made all the sense in the world when it was written years ago. Now, knowing what we learned from his three-day trial at the High Court of Justice of Catalonia, it seems beyond comprehensible that it should still appear on the club’s website.
On February 22, a judge ruled that Alves raped a 23-year-old woman on the night of December 30 2022 in the VIP private bathroom of a uptown nightclub in Barcelona called the Sutton Club.
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In the words of the court, Alves “abruptly grabbed the complainant”, threw her to the ground and raped her while preventing her from moving.
The woman said it caused her “anguish and terror”. Friends described how she had cried “uncontrollably” after leaving the bathroom.
Spanish public prosecutors were seeking a nine-year prison term for Alves, who had repeatedly denied the charges against him, and whose legal team immediately indicated an intention to appeal.
The Athletic asked Barcelona to explain why Alves is still being honoured in the section of its website reserved for ‘legends’, but the club said it would not comment. The exact response was: “FC Barcelona refuses to provide any comments on this particular topic.”
Alves, right, won 23 trophies with Barcelona (Shaun Botterill – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
Alves was a hugely successful element of a Barcelona team that wowed the world between 2008 and 2016. Over his career, he played 126 times for Brazil and won 43 titles across his 22 years as a professional. That makes him the second-most decorated footballer in history. Only Lionel Messi, his old team-mate at the Camp Nou, has won more trophies.
Barca have never had a right-back like him since — nobody has even come close in that position. The only one who could almost match the Alves of 2008 to 2016 was the Alves of 2021-22, when he returned for a second spell at the club. He was older, slower, and still the best Barca had.
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But life doesn’t just happen on the field of play. Football is not a world apart, and while some might say one should separate the work from the artist, the limit is — or should be — when a crime of irreparable harm is committed.
The Athletic also spoke to several Barcelona fan groups (associated with both the men’s and women’s teams) on the Alves issue. The only response was from organisations that support the women’s team.
“We have to separate the personal life from that of the footballer, but when we talk about crimes there is a red line,” said Alex Masdeu, one of the founders of the group ‘Tot Pel Femeni’.
“It is something very serious that goes against the principles of the club. I don’t understand why they have put it back on the website.”
Another group said they were considering making an official complaint to the club. They asked not to be named for this article, preferring to remain private while they decide on their course of action.
Some 102 players are honoured as legends on Barcelona’s website (Matthias Oesterle/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Barca defines itself as “more than a club”. They colour their logo lilac on International Women’s Day. They have demonstrated considerable and game-changing commitment to women’s sport by making the biggest investment ever in Spanish women’s football. That team is among the very best in Europe and many of its players are world champions.
I want to make it clear — although it seems ridiculous to have to say it — that Barca have no responsibility for the actions of Alves on that night in December 2022.
But if you claim to be “more than a club”, you should not honour a rapist in the way Barca have continued to. You should condemn what has already been proven before a judge, and something that has, according to her friends and the expert psychological testimony at trial, left the victim incapable of leading a normal life.
It was understandable that Alves’ status as a legendary player should not be taken away before any verdict in his trial was reached, in order to preserve the presumption of innocence. But that day has passed.
Barca simply cannot afford to continue honouring on their website a person who has raped a woman.
Comments on this article are turned off so as to avoid speculation on the victim’s identity.
(Top photo: David Zorrakino/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
