A study released by the European Union has found that Italy has some of the best taxation incentives for professional football players to come to Serie A.
The investigation compares the tax rates and incentives for professional footballers who come into an EU country from abroad.
Italy, the Netherlands, France and Belgium are the only nations with tax incentives specifically for football players’ income, or rather allow football players to enjoy the benefits of e beneficial expatriate tax regime.
These allow the football players (and indirectly the clubs) to enjoy a tax-exempt part of their salary, which is 50 per cent in Italy, 30 per cent in the Netherlands and France.
Spain did have the so-called Beckham-law from 2004, but football players were excluded from it after 2015.
The investigation recommends the EU legislator should introduce uniform harmonised high-standard good governance rules for football agents and professional football clubs through an EU licence system.
Studio Parlamento #UE: l’Italia ha il regime fiscale più favorevole d’#Europa per i calciatori. #SportMediaset https://t.co/fwVpheUg7J
— SportMediaset.it (@sportmediaset) October 14, 2021
Hasn’t made much difference. Players still don’t want to stay in Italy.
And there’s not much point getting foreigners to arrive when they are often the likes of Ramsey and Sanchez – guys on huge wages that offer nothing in the long term.
The ‘top’ players won’t come to Serie A because they can’t win European Trophies. The European CL is probably the most prestigious competition a player can win. And that will not happen with a Serie A team. This incentive probably helps to rederesti the balance a little – but the revenue gulf between the leagues is too big at the moment.
Trophies and CL ambition is what they told you and you can believe that if you like, but nobody care about the CL, show them the money and they will sign for you, if Maldini agreed to pay Gigio the 12M he wants, he will still be in Milan. Do you think Lukaku would leave for chelsea if they offer him less than what Inter paid him ? I dont think so
Not only is tax incentivising foreign players to come and play in Italy a useless initiative that the FIGC agreed to implement (which i’m sure they would have needed the Government at the time to ratify), it has shown us that it is simply watering down our league with alot of (not all) subpar players who assume valuable spots within a squad that i’m sure we want to see young Italians take these positions.
All too often, foreigners are bought in at the expense of hard working, young Italians who certainly positive would crave the opportunity given to some foreigners when they come to Serie A.
Don’t get wrong I’m all for foreigners playing in Serie A as i do think it does offer many benefits to each respective club and to the league as well, but as for offering a further tax incentve to come to Italy and play in Serie A, i think its the wrong motive. I suppose simply paying a players wage is not nearly enough these days i guess huh!
Why am I not surprised?
It’s clear they do this on purpose. Italians will not be satisfied until every club employs 50 players each from Tanzania, The Bahamas, Chad, South Sudan, and Thailand.
Ralph and Feroli,
You are both right.
A top player who has options and is capable of choosing his next club that plays in the CL will probably choose the EPL.
But a player that has less options, and no chance to lift a trophy, had had to choose between, say Spezia and Getafe in Spain, probably chooses Spezia for the tax breaks.