Qouted footballers wages - Net or Gross of Income tax?

[SweBHAFC]

Lads (or lasses).

Need help to settle an office dispute.

I was once told / or heard that the weekly wages of footballers that we read about in the media are net of tax. I.e. Michael Ownes 50k a week at Man U - is that after tax?

Is this true? And if so how can I back up this argument?

Cheers

 

[Lady Whistledown]

It's not what they earn, it's how they manage it.

The richer you are in this country, the less, relatively speaking, you pay in tax, as you can afford to engage expensive accountants who shuffle your cash around various offshore accounts so you don't have to pay up. All entirely legal, if morally questionable.

I'd do the same if I had the money, to be fair.

 

[Tricky Dicky]

I doubt things are as clear-cut as that. I remember seeing a payslip in the paper of one of the Chelsea boys (was it Mutu, can't remember), and it was rather complicated with all the extras and bonuses. I suspect the headline figure is pre-tax, but there's a lot of other things to consider (e.g. image rights).

 

[Gritt23]

No-one knows, let's be honest. These are never officially announced, it's just the medias best guess from overheard conversations, and Chinese whispers. Each story they hear or report could be based on different figures. I tend to assume that domestic players state it Gross, but players coming in from abroad tend to state their desired "net" wage.

Also, take the Torres story as an example today. The media were saying that it was a £95m deal that Chelsea had put together. £50m in transfer, £45m in wages which equated to just over £170k a week. Really, are they not paying Employers National Insurance on top then? It's lazy, guesswork, sensationalism journalism. They don't work to a prescribed formula.

Anyway, most of them funnel big chunks of it through offshore accounts as part of their "image rights" and thereby avoid paying income tax on it anyway. the wage quoted, is that inclusive or exclusive of "image rights"?

Who knows, we just know it's too f***ing much.

 

[nwgull]

Image rights is a big factor. I believe that many of the big name players receive a large chunk of their income as 'image rights' via their own limited companies. I'd imagine that the registered offices of these limited companies would be located in a country with low corporation tax rates.

 

[Gritt23]

Image rights is a big factor. I believe that many of the big name players receive a large chunk of their income as 'image rights' via their own limited companies. I'd imagine that the registered offices of these limited companies would be located in a country with low corporation tax rates.

I would suggest it's the Isle of Man. 0%.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

A Premier League footballer's contract seems to be comprised of

Basic salary.
Agent's commission (why can't the players pay the agents themselves? It is just WRONG that the clubs pay them, as it encourages misbehaviour)
Appearance bonus.
Goal bonus.
Clean sheet bonus.
Win bonus.
Draw bonus.
Loyalty bonus (hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha) which means if you don't submit the transfer request yourself you get a slice of the next transfer fee
Image rights
% of shirt sales commission
Turning up for training on time bonus
Not being papped while shagging a sixteen year old in a group sex session in a Dubai hotel bonus
Kissing the badge when scoring bonus
"To be fair" bonus for media interviews
Manager's discreet cheeky little cut (let's call it the Barry Shedcrapp clause)

 

[ManxSeagull]

I would suggest it's the Isle of Man. 0%.

The system of corporate tax known as Zero 10 (or 0/10) is currently in use in both the Isle of Man and Jersey. Essentially it means 2 corporate tax rates, what rate you pay depends on the nature of the business. For example in the Isle of Man unless you are a bank you pay zero percent!

However the European Union appears to not like Zero/10 and its days may be numbered.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Figures quoted are not gross. They are way beyond gross, obscene would be a better description.

 

[beorhthelm]

given the way the media like to inflate numbers, i cant see them missing the oppurtunity to show the number thats 40% higher. the oracle that is Football manager doesnt split out tax or NI.

based on this, assume its always the gross number (plus an extra few k for luck, then rounded up) that the newspaper claims.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

Players wages quoted in the press are usually net.
Agents like using the phrase ' netto ', particularly when foreign players are involved, who expect their salary negotiations to be net of tax. Unlike the rest of us in the real world of course.

 

[MJsGhost]

No-one knows, let's be honest. These are never officially announced, it's just the medias best guess from overheard conversations, and Chinese whispers. Each story they hear or report could be based on different figures. I tend to assume that domestic players state it Gross, but players coming in from abroad tend to state their desired "net" wage.

Also, take the Torres story as an example today. The media were saying that it was a £95m deal that Chelsea had put together. £50m in transfer, £45m in wages which equated to just over £170k a week. Really, are they not paying Employers National Insurance on top then? It's lazy, guesswork, sensationalism journalism. They don't work to a prescribed formula.

Anyway, most of them funnel big chunks of it through offshore accounts as part of their "image rights" and thereby avoid paying income tax on it anyway. the wage quoted, is that inclusive or exclusive of "image rights"?

Who knows, we just know it's too f***ing much.

This. I was told by someone in the know (ex pro, now involved in financial services for other ex pros) that Tevez gets about £280k per week NET once all the add-ons are taken into consideration.

 

[SweBHAFC]

given the way the media like to inflate numbers, i cant see them missing the oppurtunity to show the number thats 40% higher.

This being the point my collegue made which I must agree is very valid.
Nevertheless, I am sure I heard someone say that the wages are qouted net.

By the looks of the replies on here I don't think I will get a conclusive answer to settle my dispute.

 

[Superphil]

In the case of Portsmouth players, 'What is income tax?'

 

[Barrel of Fun]

The press/clubs usually make a point of stating the projected weekly wage after tax if the figure is newsworthy.

Incidentally...

danroan Dan Roan
Reliably informed that talks on image rights and salary (approx 175k/week) are all that remains for Torres deal to be completed

 

[apple]

Riise's pay slip turned up on the internet once...

Liverpool star fumes as payslip turns up on web | Metro.co.uk

 

[Tricky Dicky]

Figures quoted are not gross. They are way beyond gross, obscene would be a better description.

The words "nail" and "head" spring to mind, my friend.

 

[simmo]

Lads (or lasses).

Need help to settle an office dispute.

I was once told / or heard that the weekly wages of footballers that we read about in the media are net of tax. I.e. Michael Ownes 50k a week at Man U - is that after tax?

Is this true? And if so how can I back up this argument?

Cheers

I think most of the figures that are quoted are gross, but as others have intimated with clever accountants using image rights etc. a lot of these gross figures are also pretty much net to.

I read in the City AM paper the other week that allegedly Rooney's accountant has worked it so that Rooney pays only 2% tax. There have been quite a few "leaked" documents in the press, I have seen somewhere all of West Ham's players salaries from about 12 months ago. This also came out too John Arne Riise monthly salary from 4/5 seasons ago. £120000 a month basic (£2.4M a year) income tax is taken off but it doesn't mean that some accountant hasn't found a way of clawing it back. Makes you sick doesn't it.

 

[simmo]

I think most of the figures that are quoted are gross, but as others have intimated with clever accountants using image rights etc. a lot of these gross figures are also pretty much net to.

I read in the City AM paper the other week that allegedly Rooney's accountant has worked it so that Rooney pays only 2% tax. There have been quite a few "leaked" documents in the press, I have seen somewhere all of West Ham's players salaries from about 12 months ago. This also came out too John Arne Riise monthly salary from 4/5 seasons ago. £120000 a month basic (£2.4M a year) income tax is taken off but it doesn't mean that some accountant hasn't found a way of clawing it back. Makes you sick doesn't it.

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Top footballers' tax avoidance scheme costs Treasury £100m in lost revenues | Business | The Guardian