League considers strike action

Steve Luckings

• Last Updated: November 04. 2009 9:40PM UAE / November 4. 2009 5:40PM GMT

A tax increase by the Spanish government to raise the amount of tax paid by high earning foreigners may lead to strike action by the country’s top tier of football, the Primera Liga.

With nearly one in five Spanish citizens unemployed, the government’s measures will look to increase the amount foreigners earning in excess of €600,000 euros (Dh3.2million) a year to pay 43 per cent on income tax from 24.

The law, which will be implemented on January 1 2010, will not affect those already plying their trade in the Primera Liga, much to the relief of clubs like Real Madrid who include the world’s two most costliest footballers — Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka — and Barcelona, who boast Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi in their ranks, but it could dent their chances of luring players in the future.

The LFP president Jose Luis Astiazaran said the league would meet tomorrow to decide what measures to adopt, with a strike very much among the options they are considering.

“This is a special tax regime which has allowed star players to join our league which benefits both the fans and the public coffers,” he said.

The spat is similar to one raging in France, where a dispute has broken out among government ministers about scrapping a tax break for top athletes.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta also condemned the Spanish government’s move and said they should have consulted those affected more thoroughly before acting.

“This measure damages Spanish football,” he said. “It would mean that talented players will think twice before coming to our league.”

The ruling Socialist party’s spokesman, Jose Antonio Alonso, said the change was simply an attempt to level the playing field in difficult times.

* Agencies