Manchester United: Jose Mourinho makes statement on tax avoidance allegations

Jose Mourinho, the Manchester United manager, has released a statement after he was accused of using offshore accounts to avoid paying tax on millions of pounds in earnings.

The allegations emerged last weekend after The European Investigative Collaborations consortium, which includes several European media organisations, published findings from two terabytes of leaked information which they had obtained.

It was claimed that Mourinho had moved large sums of money earned through image rights and product endorsements to a tax haven in the British Virgin Islands and that the 53-year-old coach had misled British and Spanish tax authorities.

Cristiano Ronaldo, who played under Mourinho at Real Madrid, was also accused of moving money to the British Virgin Islands in, what The Sunday Times called, “highly aggressive tax avoidance”.

A statement on the official website of Gestifute, a sports agency which represents both Mourinho and Ronaldo, published a statement titled ‘Statement from Jose Mourinho’ on Tuesday night.

It read: “Mr. Jose Mourinho, who lived in Spain from June 2010 to May 2013, paid more than 26 million euros in taxes, with an average tax rate of over 41 per cent.”

“As he stated last week, the Spanish government, through its Tax Agency, has certified that he is up to date on his tax obligations.”

On Saturday, following the publication of the allegations against Mourinho and Ronaldo, Gestifute denied any wrongdoing by their clients.

A statement by the sports agency said: “Both Cristiano Ronaldo and José Mourinho are fully compliant with their tax obligations with the Spanish and British tax authorities.

“Neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor José Mourinho have ever been involved in legal proceedings regarding the commission of a tax offence.

“Any insinuation or accusation made to Cristiano Ronaldo or José Mourinho over the commission of a tax offence will be reported to the legal authorities and prosecuted.”

More revelations from the leaked information, passed on by the whistleblowing group ‘Football Leaks’, are set to come in the following weeks