Croatian Footballer Caught Up In Spanish Authorities' Tax Crackdown

Robbie Lawther

1 December 2017

Spanish prosecutors have accused Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric of defrauding tax authorities of £770,000 ($1.04 million) in 2013 and 2014, according to the Daily Mail.

The newswire said prosecutors were informed last month that Modric may have “financial positions” in the Isle of Man, and they were not known by tax authorities in Spain. And this could have affected the amount of taxes the player was supposed to pay in Spain.

The accusations against the 32 year old came a day after Brazilian defender Marcelo appeared in a Madrid court in another tax case, which was reported by this publication.

Footballers in Spain have been investigated by the tax authorities in recent years because of the abolition of the Beckham Rule for professional footballers. When David Beckham went to Spain to play for Real Madrid in 2003, a special Spanish tax system (Regimen especial para Trabajadores Desplazados) was set up for him so he did not have to pay tax on his worldwide image rights. This system was extended to people moving to Spain, although in an ironic twist, professional footballers were excluded from the scheme from 1 January, 2015.

This has sparked investigations into the biggest stars in Spanish football since the abolition of the rule. Last year, Lionel Messi and his father were found guilty on three counts of defrauding tax authorities of £3.4 million from income made from image rights. In June, this publication reported that former Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho, now at Manchester United, is also being investigated.