Internet rumours spread quickly earlier this week about a tape alleged to feature Shakira engaging in a threesome on a yacht with pop star Alejandro Sanz and her boyfriend, Antonio de la Rua.

Argentine DJ Javier Ceriani helped spread the rumour by making comments about the "sex tape" on his Zona Cero radio show.

He said: "It's been said ... there is a private video recorded on a yacht, one that could implicate Alejandro Sanz, Shakira and Antonio de la Rua."

He suggested the tape was in the hands of the courts.

But representatives for the stars denied a tape exists.

In a joint statement, the singers' representatives said: "This is a false rumour. This is totally absurd any way you look at it. There is no possibility that such a video exists.

"It is a baseless and malicious rumour."