Taxation madness

Last week’s men’s tennis tournament at Queen’s was “bereft of top ten players”, says The Wall Street Journal. Australia’s Alex de Minaur, world number six, was there, but the rest were honing their backhands at a nothingy tournament in Germany. The reason? “Britain’s baroque tax laws.” UK winnings are taxed as normal income, and the government demands a cut of global endorsement deals, depending on the number of days spent in the country. If a player comes for the summer season and loses in the early rounds of Wimbledon, he could end up paying a tax bill worth more than his winnings.