A majority of judges on a Brazilian court upheld the rape conviction of former AC Milan and Brazil striker Robinho on Wednesday, ruling that he must serve a nine-year prison sentence in Brazil.

The decision, made by judges on Brazil's Superior Court of Justice, was reached with a vote of 9-2.

Robinho, now 40 years old, was convicted in Italy for his involvement in a group sexual assault in 2013 during his time at AC Milan.

As Brazil does not extradite its nationals, Italy sought his imprisonment in his home country. One of the factors considered by Brazil's superior court was whether Robinho's case falls within the country's immigration law, enacted in 2017.

Robinho's lawyer, José Eduardo Rangel de Alckim, has stated that they will appeal the decision to Brazil's Supreme Court and will request that Robinho remain out of prison during the appeal process.

"Robinho is available and willing to appear anytime before the judges. If an officer gets there, he will comply. He will not oppose," Alckim said.

"Our first concern is to suspend the immediate arrest order. We will ask for the sentence to be executed after the appeal decision has been made."

Francisco Falcão, the initial judge to cast a vote, advocated for Robinho to fulfill his sentence in Brazil.

He emphasized the importance of accountability, stating that the former player should not evade punishment. Falcão also cautioned against potential diplomatic tensions between Brazil and Italy if the sentence remains unfulfilled.

"There's no obstacle to validate the execution of his sentence. It was confirmed by a court in Milan, which is the competent authority in this case," Falcão said. "The conviction is final. The defendant was not put on trial in absence in Italy, he had representation."

Robinho resides in Santos, located outside of Sao Paulo, and surrendered his passport to Brazilian authorities in March 2023. Despite the court's decision, he maintains his innocence, asserting that his sexual encounter with the woman at a Milan bar was consensual. Lawyer Jacopo Gnocchi, who represented the victim, expressed satisfaction with the ruling by the Brazilian court.

"We believe that this is the fair conclusion of a case that took place in Italy, with assurances for all the defendants who were then found guilty," Gnocchi told Brazilian news website UOL.

"We respected and we understood that the Brazilian Constitution does not allow the extradition (of its own citizens), but that does not change the fact that when the sentence is final it is fair… that the sentence is applied."