The Guardian, Top Footballers’ Tax Avoidance Scheme Costs Treasury £100m in Lost Revenues:
Some of the Premier League’s highest-paid footballers are being targeted by tax inspectors over controversial tax arrangements that could be costing the Treasury more than £100m in vanishing tax liabilities.
Revenue & Customs officials are focusing on a growing trend for payments to be poured into player-controlled companies under the guise of “image rights” earnings. The trend in part reflects the increasingly international appeal of the Premier League, allowing clubs to cash in on fans around the world. However, it also presents an opportunity for players to take advantage of complex UK tax rules.
Among those to have recruited top tax advisers to devise such schemes are Wayne Rooney at Manchester United, Gareth Barry at Manchester City and Theo Walcott at Arsenal – all England internationals. Some reports over the weekend suggested tax inspectors could be pressing clubs, rather than players, to pick up the tab should any of these arrangements be found to have overstepped the mark.
The complex tax structures often surrounding player-controlled image rights companies mean players can legally avoid paying the 50% top rate of income tax on their earnings. By receiving loans from these rights, companies’ tax rates can be depressed even further, potentially as low as 2% according to some tax experts.
