MADRID - Former FC Barcelona and Brazil defender Dani Alves had his conviction for sexual assault overturned on appeal by the High Court in the Catalan region of north-east Spain on Friday.

Alves was originally sentenced to four and a half years in jail in February 2024 after being found guilty of raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub. He also had to pay the alleged victim 150,000 euros ($161,000) in compensation.

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He was released a month later on appeal, with the former player asking for the verdict to be quashed, while prosecutors asked for a tougher sentence.

Friday's verdict saw the judges overturn the original guilty verdict, saying the testimony of Alves' supposed victim contained "inconsistencies and contradictions," and didn't coincide with evidence provided by video cameras in the establishment where the offense was alleged to have taken place.

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"The divergence between what has been said by the accuser and what actually happened compromises the trustworthiness of the account," considered the panel of judges, made up of three women and a man.

The 41-year-old Alves played 126 times for the Brazilian national team, as well as making 408 appearances for Barcelona in two spells. He also played for Sevilla, Paris Saint Germain and Juventus and was playing in Mexico when detained in early 2023.