England's European Championship winners are set to hand over close to £790,000 to the taxman following their dramatic penalty shootout victory against Spain on Sunday.
The Lionesses' second continental triumph in three years comes with significant financial implications for the squad.
Each member of the victorious team faces an individual tax liability of approximately £34,300 on their championship bonus payments.
The collective tax burden represents a substantial portion of the prize money distributed to the players.
England's European Championship winners are set to hand over close to £790,000 to the taxman following their dramatic penalty shootout victory against Spain on Sunday
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The Football Association will also contribute roughly £255,000 in employer's National Insurance payments related to the victory bonuses, adding to the overall sum heading to HMRC from the championship winnings.
UEFA allocated a record £34million in total prize money for the 16 nations competing in the tournament. The winners' share amounted to £4.4m, which included performance-related payments.
Tournament regulations stipulated that participating federations must allocate between 30 and 40 per cent of their winnings to squad members.
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The Lionesses paraded the trophy down The Mall to thousands of fans earlier this week following their Euro 2025 triumph
| GettyThe Guardian reported that England's players had negotiated a £1.75m collective payment should they secure the championship.
This arrangement meant each of the squad members would receive £73,000 in bonus payments.
These individual sums push all players above the £125,140 annual threshold, resulting in a marginal tax rate of 47 per cent - comprising 45 per cent income tax plus 2 per cent National Insurance contributions.
Tax and business advisory firm Blick Rothenberg has calculated the precise financial impact of the Lionesses' success. Robert Salter, a director at the firm, said: "The Lionesses will be delighted with their win at Euro 2025 for what it represents and the hard work that went into it."
He continued: "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."
Salter noted that whilst the women's team earns less than their male equivalents, the bonus structure ensures significant tax obligations.
He added: "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."
Sunday's victory over Spain is expected to generate additional revenue streams for the players beyond their tournament earnings.
Salter highlighted that numerous squad members already earn substantial sums from commercial activities, sponsorship agreements and image rights deals, all of which attract taxation.
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Chloe Kelly scored the winning penalty on Sunday as England beat Spain in the final of Euro 2025 | GETTY"Many players are also making significant amounts through marketing, appearance fees and image rights, which are also liable to tax," he explained.
"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."