A Year Behind Bars: Robinho’s Life in Prison Includes Work, Reading and Football

It has now been a full year since former Brazil international Robinho began serving a nine-year sentence in Brazil for his conviction in a 2013 gang rape case in Italy. The 41-year-old, who played for Real Madrid, Milan and Santos, is imprisoned at Tremembé, a facility known for housing high-profile inmates. He shares an eight-square-meter cell with a younger man convicted of inciting suicide.

Robinho was sentenced by Italian courts but is serving his time in Brazil due to the lack of an extradition treaty, as reported by Clarín. Since entering prison, he has maintained what authorities call “exemplary behavior,” aiming to reduce his sentence by participating in labor and education programs. Tasks include gardening, electronics repair, and 600 hours of technical coursework.

Visits are limited to close family once a month, with his 17-year-old son—a recent Santos signing—among them. He has also joined a prison reading club and occasionally plays football with other inmates, which include politicians and businessmen.

The case resurfaced in headlines after the recent suicide of Rudney Gomes, a former bodyguard and friend of Robinho’s who was linked to the case but never convicted. Despite his conviction, Robinho maintains he is innocent, although he admits to having had relations with the woman involved.