Ex-England footballer Trevor Sinclair confronted with bankruptcy order by HMRC

24 April 2025 , 22:15

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Ex-England footballer Trevor Sinclair confronted with bankruptcy order by HMRC

Former England international and pundit Trevor Sinclair is confronting bankruptcy following an order from HMRC concerning a substantial tax bill several years after being dismissed from the BBC

Former England footballer Trevor Sinclair is facing a bankruptcy order from HMRC over an unpaid £36k tax bill. 

The 52-year-old, who played in the Premier League with Queens Park Rangers, West Ham and Manchester City, went on to become a regular face on TV and on the radio since hanging up his boots. However, his media career took a hit when he was axed by the BBC in 2018.

Sinclair also left talkSPORT following a controversial social media post about Queen Elizabeth’s death. The former winger now finds himself embroiled in a legal battle, with District Judge Caroline Wilkinson warning him: "No more head in the sand."

Central London County Court heard that Sinclair racked up a hefty debt to the taxman after his accountant passed away. The outstanding amount dates back to the 2021/22 tax year and includes two large sums, as well as overdue National Insurance and penalty payments.

Shabab Rizvi, representing HMRC, told Judge Wilkinson: "HMRC’s position today is that we are seeking a bankruptcy order. Since the breathing space order ended, we have had no contact from the debtor. The debtor is a former Premier League footballer and should have the means to satisfy the debt, but there’s been no contact with HMRC at all."

Sinclair’s legal team managed to secure a two-month adjournment after revealing that he ’is currently in receipt of a job offer in Saudi Arabia’.

Sinclair, who’s been helping coach the Indian national football team since last January, also opened up about his former role as a BBC pundit. He took up the position in 2015, seven years after retiring from professional football, but he was dismissed after a drink-driving incident that led to him injuring a woman while behind the wheel.

Talking with Ben Heath on his podcast last year, Sinclair confessed: "I’ve got no time for anyone that gets behind the wheel after drinking and I did that, so I lost my job with the BBC. I was driving carefully, seeing the girl kind of get out and as soon as I clipped her, I thought - everything just went dark.

"And then I waited for the police and said, ’I’ve been drinking, bang to rights’. The BBC obviously didn’t want to know anymore after that. Obviously, I regret that."

Sinclair continued to be a pundit on talkSPORT until he was suspended for a social media post about the Queen’s death in 2022. He wrote: "Racism was outlawed in England in the 60’s and it’s been allowed to thrive so why should black and brown mourn! !".

After deleting the post and apologising, Sinclair only appeared on one more talkSPORT show before moving into coaching.

Emily Hughes