Rooney facing tax probe over 1.5m: Revenue investigate image rights

Published: 07 Feb 2010 - 10:51:40

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Rooney facing tax probe over 1.5m: Revenue investigate image rights

Counting the cost: Wayne Rooney Wayne Rooney's Manchester United contract is being investigated by the taxman after court documents revealed he earns £1.52million in image rights, a device the HM Revenue & Customs claim is a dodge engineered by football clubs. United have already admitted deals struck since 2005 are being probed, meaning Rooney's annual £6.2m salary, revealed in the court case brought by his former agents, will be one of those under scrutiny. Rooney, who watched the case in court on Friday, has more than £1.5m of his annual income paid to his image rights company and therefore taxed at 21 per cent, rather than the new higher rate of 50. It is expected that the Revenue investigation will extend to all Premier League clubs and, should HMRC prevail, the clubs would have to increase wages to ensure the net effect remained the same. The Revenue say clubs should have consulted them before agreeing deals if they were in doubt over tax status, and it adds: 'The Government remains committed to ensuring everyone pays their fair share of tax and that the minority, who seek not to do so, should not succeed.' The Revenue claim United alone owe £5.3m in back taxes and, more importantly, the club would have to find an extra £1m a year on Rooney's current deal to ensure he takes home the same net pay, meaning a huge hike in the wage bill, given that most of the top earners have an image rights deal. The club are prepared to argue the case in court, and insist the deals are legitimate. Man United 5 Portsmouth 0: Rooney the catalyst as five-star Reds hit topWayne Rooney's agents expected to net £11.5m from Manchester United strikerRevealed: Rooney's bumper teenage deal - United star earned £500k in image rights as a 16-year-old at EvertonMANCHESTER UNITED FC