In this combination of file pictures, Neymar (L) reacts as he plays in a five-a-side football tournament and Najila Trindade Mendes de Souza speaks during a television interview in Sao Paulo. File / AFP

Police said they indicted the model for procedural fraud, slanderous denunciation and extortion. Her former partner Estivens Alves is accused of disclosing erotic content, which was then published online.

Najila Trindade filed a rape complaint with Sao Paulo police upon her return from a trip to Paris in May in which she said she was assaulted by Neymar following a pre-arranged meeting.

A judge dismissed the case in August, citing insufficient evidence.

Instead, Sao Paulo prosecutors said in a statement that investigators had found "indications of slanderous denunciation and extortion" in the woman's accusation.

A final decision on whether to prosecute Trindade will be left to a judge.

Neymar, the world's most expensive footballer, has always protested his innocence, saying their relations were consensual.

The case complicated an already tumultuous year for the 27-year-old Brazil star, who has yet to play for his club Paris Saint-Germain this season following injury and reports of an aborted return to previous club Barcelona.

On Friday, Neymar played his first game since suffering an ankle injury in June, grabbing a second-half equalizer for Brazil in a 2-2 friendly draw with Colombia.

Agence France-Presse