The 23-year-old girl who was allegedly raped by the Brazilian soccer player, Dani Alves, at Barcelona’s Sutton nightclub expressed two major fears after the sexual assault: that her name would come to light and that – given the reputation of the man she accuses – no one will believe her.

Reality confirmed only the first of these fears: her full name and image were circulated on social media in an attempt by the footballer’s entourage (including his mother) to discredit her. The second fear, however, has faded: from the beginning, investigators – as well as the judge and prosecutor in the case – were convinced that he was telling the truth. Her complaint resulted in Alves being arrested and jailed. The trial will be held from February 5 to 7 in Barcelona.

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A post shared by Daniel Alves (@danialves)

“I’m not going to report it, because… who’s going to believe me?”, the girl said, spontaneously and between tears, to the manager of the night club and to a doorman who had seen her crying in the corridor. The victim was standing next to her cousin and a friend, about to leave the club. It was after 4 am. on December 31, 2022. At that moment, Alves walked past her and – without a salute or gesture – left the Sutton, surrounded by the club’s security staff. The young woman had not given the footballer’s name to the authorities at the time, which would have forced her, according to the sexual assault protocol, to detain him until the police arrived, as “El Pais” writes.

The alleged sexual assault had occurred minutes earlier in the suite. The room – which is accessible with a key – has a sofa, TV and bathroom. It can only be used by customers who have reserved table number six in the VIP area. That night, Dani Alves found out, who went to Sutton (where he has been a regular since 2008), accompanied by a Brazilian friend. The former Barca footballer saw three girls on the dance floor and asked a waiter to encourage them to come to his table so he could invite them for a drink. As the group danced, Alves approached the girl with sexual intent and gestured for her to enter the suite. There are no pictures of what happened in the bathroom, but there are six versions of events: one from the young woman (who claimed, from the start, that she was raped) and five from Alves, who insists the sex was consensual.

The trial against Alves – as in many sexual assault cases in which there is no conclusive physical evidence, only circumstantial evidence – has turned into a question of credibility. And, in that sense, the victim has clearly prevailed, despite her initial fear, shared by many other victims, that she will not be believed.

The young woman was taken to a local hospital, where she was examined. On January 3, 2023, he gave a more extensive statement to the police. In addition to questioning her, the officers assessed her emotional state. He arrived late at the police station because news had begun to emerge about the sexual assault attributed to Alves. He had a panic attack. In that second statement, according to the police report, she displayed “feelings of helplessness, anger and paranoia” about “the lies on social media” and real “terror” about her name being made public. She once again expressed her doubts about filing the complaint with the same phrase: “No one will believe me.”

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A post shared by Daniel Alves (@danialves)

January 20, 2023 was the key day in the Alves case. That day, the Brazilian player was arrested. From this, the first, “battle” for the truth of the story, the victim won…

Alves tried to deny everything. At first he said they just talked and danced, but that nothing sexual happened between them, nor did he invite her to the suite. But when he saw that the pictures disproved this and that traces of his sperm were found in the sink, he changed his story and said that the girl did go to the bathroom and that she stayed with him. But when he was told that sperm had been found on the victim, he changed his story again and claimed that she “rushed” him.

Given Dani Alves’ contradictory statements and his risk of fleeing Spain, the same day the judge remanded him in custody, a situation his defense team was unable to overturn (he has changed his lawyer three times). Since April 2023, when he voluntarily testified to receive his conditional freedom, Alves maintains that there was penetration, but that it was consensual (he had not said this before, he explained, so that his wife, the model Joana Sanz, infidelity). In his most recent defense brief, filed a few weeks ago, he asked that if the jury doesn’t believe him, at least apply the mitigating factor of intoxication. He claims that, on the night in question, he had had too much to drink and did not know what he was doing.

The prosecutor is asking for nine years in prison for Alves, while the victim is asking for 12 years. The prosecutor also requests that Alves pay compensation to the victim in the amount of 150,000 euros.