Cristiano Ronaldo’s new Las Vegas lawyer has said claims that the football star raped a woman are “complete fabrications” and the encounter was consensual.

Peter Christiansen issued a statement that does not deny Ronaldo and the woman reached a non-disclosure agreement in 2010.

But the statement declared that documents cited in media reports about Ronaldo’s encounter in 2009 with Kathryn Mayorga in Las Vegas hotel penthouse were altered before being “irresponsibly published”.

A lawsuit filed on September 27 in Nevada state court seeks to void the non-disclosure agreement that Ms Mayorga’s lawyers say she signed while accepting 375,000 US dollars (£284,000) to keep quiet.

Las Vegas police say they have reopened a sexual assault investigation of the encounter between Ronaldo and Ms Mayorga.

Ronaldo Rape Lawsuit
Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has denied raping a woman in Las Vegas (Antonio Calanni/AP)

Ronaldo “is accustomed to being the subject of press attention that goes along with being famous,” Mr Christiansen said.

But the statement called it “absolutely deplorable that any media outlet would support or advance such an elaborate and deliberate defamation campaign based on stolen, easily manipulated digital documents”.

Ronaldo, 33, of Portugal, plays for the Italian club Juventus and his home country’s national team. Some sponsors, including Nike and video game maker EA Sports, have expressed concern about the rape allegation.

Ms Mayorga, 34, a former model, filed a lawsuit on September 27 in Nevada acknowledging that she accepted 375,000 US dollars to keep quiet about the encounter with Ronaldo.

The lawsuit seeks to void the agreement that her lawyers say she signed under pressure from “fixers” trying to protect the reputation of Ronaldo. The lawsuit also seeks monetary damages of at least 200,000 dollars.

“Given the breach of that agreement by the other side and the inflammatory accusations that have been lodged in the ensuing days, Mr Ronaldo feels compelled to no longer stand silent,” Christiansen said in his statement.

“To absolve any doubt, Mr Ronaldo has always maintained, as he does today, that what occurred in 2009 in Las Vegas was consensual in nature,” it said. “The documents which purportedly contain statements by Mr Ronaldo and have been reported in the media are complete fabrications.”