England lifted the European Championship trophy for the second time in three years after overcoming Spain in Sunday’s final – but a large chunk of their prize money could be taken away from them
Sunday night’s triumph made it two European Championship crowns in three years for the Lionesses as they outlasted Spain in Switzerland. But England’s Euro 2025 stars face losing a major portion of their prize money due to the tax payable on their earnings.
The Lionesses had to rally from behind in the final after Mariona Caldentey netted the opener for Spain in the first half. Alessia Russo levelled the score just before the hour mark, pushing the match into extra time and eventually penalties.
Lionesses’ goalkeeper Hannah Hampton saved two penalties in the shootout, with Chloe Kelly scoring the decisive penalty that sent England fans into raptures – as Richard Keys now calls for a major change to penalty shootouts.
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Prior to the tournament, UEFA announced a record £34million in prize money available for the 16 competing nations. A whopping £4.4m was set aside for the champions, inclusive of performance bonuses, with participating teams obliged to distribute between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of their prize money among the players.
The Lionesses had also agreed upon a bonus structure with the FA ahead of Euro 2025, which would see England stars collectively receive a payout of £1.75m if they won the trophy.
Following England’s victory, leading audit, tax and business advisory firm, Blick Rothenberg, disclosed that over three quarters of a million pounds could be deducted from the Lionesses’ prize fund and paid to HMRC.
Robert Salter, a director at the firm, commented: “The Lionesses will be delighted with their win at Euro 2025 for what it represents and the hard work that went into it. But they will have a hefty tax bill to pay to HMRC on their prize money, at a combined total tax and National Insurance Contributions (NIC) liability of roughly £788,900 for the whole squad.
“Although the Lionesses are not earning as much as their male counterparts, the average per player bonuses of £73,000 each will ensure that all of the squad’s players become liable to an effective marginal tax rate of 47 per cent – 45 per cent income tax and 2 per cent NIC on their income above the £125,140 per annum threshold, meaning they could be paying around £34,300 each in tax.”
He further stated: “In addition to the tax and NIC payable on the winning bonuses by the players personally, the FA should be liable to employers’ NIC on the prize bonuses, which will cost the FA c £255,000 more.
“Many players are also making significant amounts through marketing, appearance fees and image rights, which are also liable to tax.
“Their earnings from this are likely to increase significantly over the coming months given their success and the ongoing growth in the profile of the women’s game, meaning HMRC will be getting even more tax ‘wins’ in the future.”
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