Cristiano Ronaldo replaced on FIFA 19 box art
The Juventus star was recently fined €18.8 million for tax evasion
Electronic Arts has dropped Cristiano Ronaldo from the cover of FIFA 19, five months after the game launched.
The Juventus star and face of the FIFA games since 2017 has been the centre of controversy following historic rape allegations from 2009, and a more recent tax evasion conviction.
His place on the game's box art and menus has been taken by Paulo Dybala, Neymar da Silva Santos, and Kevin de Bruyne.
An EA spokesperson told Eurogamer the rebrand was in aid of the UEFA Champions League which kicked off on Wednesday last week.
"With the UEFA Champions League coming to EA Sports FIFA 19 this year, we have a unique opportunity to offer a range of new content to players that reflects the real-world excitement of football," reads the statement.
"We often celebrate different talent across our sports games, and with the UEFA Champions League knockout stages underway we are featuring some of the biggest stars in football and bringing new players a range of content to get excited about."
While Ronaldo maintains his innocence regarding accusations that he raped Kathryn Mayorga in a Las Vegas hotel room nearly ten years ago, state police issued a warrant to Italian authorities for a sample of his DNA last month.
His lawyer told CNN "what occurred in Las Vegas in 2009 was consensual in nature" and that it was a "very standard request" on behalf of the police.
Also last month, the 34-year-old star struck a deal with Spanish authorities over tax evasion charges and agreed to pay a €18.8 million fine. In addition, he was handed a 23-month jail sentence which he is unlikely to serve as it was a non-violent offence.