Ruling

Spanish court rules Julio Iglesias is father of 43-year old man

Singer Julio Iglesias (left) and Javier Sánchez Santos (right). | Sáshenka Gutiérrez

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterMadrid10/07/2019 14:08

A Spanish court ruled on today that singer Julio Iglesias was the father of a 43-year old man, resolving a paternity dispute that had lasted three decades after the singer refused to take a DNA test.

Javier Sanchez-Santos was born in 1976 to Portuguese dancer Maria Edite Santos. The ruling that he is the son of Iglesias can still be appealed.

Iglesias, 75, has sold more than 300 million records in 14 languages, making him the best-selling Latin artist ever. He turned to singing after a car accident in 1963 that ended his burgeoning career as a soccer player.

He has eight other children. Three were born out of his marriage to Isabel Preysler and five with his wife Miranda Rijnsburger.