Tennis superstar Novak Djokovic has found himself in a legal tiebreak with Marbella’s planning authorities, receiving a second fine for carrying out renovations on his luxury villa without the proper permits.
The high-profile Serbian athlete, who holds multiple Grand Slam titles, has been sanctioned by the Marbella Town Hall for undertaking construction work at his hillside mansion without obtaining the legally required building licence. According to the case file accessed by EFE, the property—valued at over €10 million and nestled in an exclusive residential enclave on the Costa del Sol—was subject to unauthorised alterations breaching local urban planning regulations.
This is Djokovic’s second fine for the offence. The most recent sanction, issued and reportedly notified to him on 13 February this year, amounts to €5,000. It comes after he failed to meet a two-month deadline to either apply for, or obtain, the necessary licence to legalise the works already carried out.
A mixed doubles of legality
According to the Town Hall, part of the construction could potentially be legalised. However, other modifications—specifically exceeding permissible height and floor limits, and infringing the required minimum distance between boundary lines—violate fundamental urban planning rules. Rectifying these issues might involve removing parts of the structure, including a basement garage and a small porch.
The local government has given Djokovic another two-month deadline to “re-establish urban legality” and sort out the illicit modifications. The warning is clear: fail to act, and the sanctions could continue.
Pressure from the baseline
The law underpinning the Town Hall’s actions is the Ley de Impulso para la Sostenibilidad del Territorio de Andalucía (LISTA), a regional planning act designed to bolster territorial sustainability. Under this legislation, the municipality can impose a total of up to twelve coercive fines if a property owner does not comply.
If Djokovic continues to ignore the requirements, Marbella officials say they intend to proceed with measures aimed at physically restoring the illegally altered portions of the villa to their original, authorised state.
Celebrity homeowners under scrutiny
This situation serves as a high-profile reminder that even sports royalty must play by the rules when it comes to real estate in Spain. Urban planning legislation in regions like Andalusia is not just bureaucratic red tape—it’s a set of enforceable laws aimed at ensuring sustainable and legal development. Property owners, regardless of fame or fortune, are expected to abide by them.
From a buyer’s perspective, the cautionary tale offers a useful lesson: glamorous homes in prestigious locations—especially those that have been renovated—deserve extra due diligence. Verify all licences and permits before assuming that everything, like a cross-court volley, is in perfect order.
