You have just been noticed by a handball, cycling or horse-riding club for your talents, and are about to embark on a career as a professional athlete? You have been invited to play on the soccer or swimming team of a major French club, and want to make sure you comply with the French tax requirements?
Lobe Law, specialized in sports taxation in Paris, has answered these questions on behalf of its clients. After meeting with its clients to analyze their current situation and needs, Lobe Law guides them towards solutions tailored to this very specific profession. Well-versed in the remuneration and taxation of sports professionals in France, Lobe Law supports its clients throughout their careers.
Sports law governs the rights and obligations of professional sports stakeholders, such as athletes and sports companies, federations, as well as sports associations. Lobe Law advises and represents the interests of its clients in all their legal matters.
Consulting a sports lawyer helps secure the legal, tax and social aspects of a professional sporting career. The lawyer may advise an athlete during contract negotiations, review remuneration arrangements, regulate the commercial use of the athlete’s image and assess applicable tax obligations. Assistance may also be provided to clubs, sports companies and agents in their contractual relationships. When a career has an international dimension, legal advice can help anticipate the consequences of a transfer, a move to France or a departure for another country.
An athlete who is a French tax resident is generally taxable in France on their worldwide income. This may include salary, bonuses, competition earnings and, depending on their legal classification, income received under commercial agreements or from the use of the athlete’s image. Where income has also been earned or taxed abroad, the relevant tax treaty between France and the other country must be reviewed to determine which country may tax the income and how double taxation can be avoided.
A sports lawyer may negotiate or review employment contracts between professional athletes and clubs, as well as renewals and amendments to those contracts. The lawyer may also advise on sports agency agreements, contracts governing the commercial use of an athlete’s image, name or voice, and certain sponsorship or representation agreements. The review may cover remuneration, bonuses, the duration of the agreement, each party’s obligations, termination provisions and the tax and social security consequences of the proposed arrangement.
A foreign athlete performing sporting activities in France may be taxable in France on the remuneration connected with activities carried out in French territory, even if the athlete remains a tax resident of another country. French-source sporting income may also be subject to withholding tax. However, the applicable tax treaty between France and the athlete’s country of residence must be examined, as it may determine how taxing rights are allocated and how any resulting double taxation is relieved.
An athlete should ideally consult a lawyer as soon as an offer, letter of intent or draft agreement is received and before making a binding commitment. The lawyer can review the duration of the agreement, fixed and variable remuneration, bonuses, termination clauses, sporting obligations, exclusivity provisions and image rights. The lawyer may also assess the agent’s remuneration and the tax and social security consequences of the agreement, particularly when the athlete is moving between countries. Early advice makes it easier to negotiate provisions that may be difficult to amend after signature.
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