Boris Becker was once the top-ranked tennis player in the world, and remains one of the few people to have won all four Grand Slam singles titles during his career. But recently he’s found himself struggling with financial hardships, battling to pay off his massive debts. His story has been called bizarre by many in the media, as well as depressing and heartbreaking by some fans of the retired tennis star who expected more from him after his glorious playing days were over.
The former German tennis player, champion of six Grand Slams, has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for a punishable crime of insolvency. A London court has sentenced him after it was shown that Boris Becker hid 2.9 million euros after declaring himself insolvent. He will be behind bars for at least a year.
The events date back to June 2017. Then, Becker declared bankruptcy to avoid facing a debt of 60 million euros with his creditors. Among the assets he hid were a house worth €1.5 million located in Leimen, Germany, €830,000, 75,000 shares in a technology company, tennis trophies and €820,000 of a loan from a Liechtenstein bank. In addition, he transferred 463,000 euros from his account to others, including those of two of his ex-wives, Barbara Becker and Sharlely Becker.
The judge, Deborah Taylor, has been especially harsh with him: “He has shown no remorse, no acceptance of guilt and has sought to distance himself from the prosecution and bankruptcy. While I accept his humiliation as part of the procedure, there has been no humility.” And she has reminded him of what happened in 2002, when he was convicted in Germany for evading 1.7 million euros in taxes: “He did not heed the warning they gave him and the opportunity that the suspended sentence gave him, that is an aggravating factor significant”.
About Boris Becker
Boris Becker was one of the most prominent tennis players in the late 80’s and early 90’s. He was the youngest player to win Wimbledon, and he was widely considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time. However, in addition to his career on the court, Becker had many controversies off the court, including his entry into bankruptcy due to credit card debt.