Former England footballer Trevor Sinclair has been declared bankrupt after failing to pay more than £36,000 in unpaid taxes and penalties tied to his media work from 2021 to 2022.
The 51-year-old, who played for clubs like Queens Park Rangers, West Ham, and Manchester City, was issued the bankruptcy order at Central London County Court.
The court heard Sinclair owed a total of £36,424 to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including over £13,000 related to his work as a television and radio pundit. The debt came to light after the sudden death of Sinclair’s accountant, who had been managing his financial affairs.
Judge Caroline Wilkinson presided over the case and granted the bankruptcy order in Sinclair’s absence, noting that he had failed to attend court hearings or respond to legal correspondence. She stated, “Mr Sinclair is not in attendance today and no proposals have been put forward for paying his debt. In the circumstances, the court finds that Mr Sinclair is unable to pay his debts as they fall due and it will make the bankruptcy order.”
At an earlier hearing in April, HMRC’s barrister, Shabab Rizvi, pointed out that Sinclair was a former Premier League player and should have had the means to pay. “There’s been no contact with HMRC at all,” Rizvi added.
Sinclair’s lawyer, Robert Lee, had requested an adjournment, saying his client was still active in media and had just received a job offer in Saudi Arabia. He also claimed that Sinclair’s tax issues stemmed from being wrongly treated as self-employed. The court allowed a delay in proceedings to give Sinclair a chance to explore other options, such as setting up an individual voluntary arrangement, but no plans were submitted.
Sinclair first gained attention in the 1990s, beginning his professional career at Blackpool before making headlines with a stunning bicycle-kick goal for QPR in 1997. That goal earned him Match of the Day’s Goal of the Season. He earned 12 caps for England and was part of the squad at the 2002 World Cup.
After retiring from professional football in 2008, Sinclair became a regular voice in sports media. He worked as a pundit on TV and radio until 2022 when his broadcasting career stalled following controversial social media comments about public mourning after Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
The bankruptcy ruling marks a serious financial and personal setback for Sinclair, whose public profile had already taken a hit in recent years. Despite his high-profile football and media careers, Sinclair now joins a growing list of former athletes who have struggled with financial issues post-retirement.
This situation underscores the importance of managing post-career finances, especially for former athletes moving into freelance media work, where tax responsibilities can often become complicated without proper financial support.
Sinclair has not issued a public statement regarding the bankruptcy.
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