Fifa and its wholly owned subsidiary exempt from taxPlayers in Australia had to pay 32.5% of their match fees
Fifa has been heavily criticised for negotiating an eight‑and‑a‑half‑year tax exemption for the 2023 Women’s World Cup when the players in Australia ended up paying 32.5% of their match fee income to the country’s tax office (ATO).
Football’s world governing body is exempt from paying tax on any income in or from Australia from 1 July 2020 to 31 December 2028 but, as the Guardian revealed last month, players from several countries were forced to pay almost a third of their match fee income to the ATO. This was in stark contrast to the co-hosts New Zealand, whose Inland Revenue Department exempted Fifa and the players from all taxes.