French Sports Minister Assures Top Footballers Will Not Be Exempt From 75% Taxes

French football players will not "be excluded from a special tax on large fortunes," with those earning more than €1M ($1.3M) per year to be taxed at 75%, according to the EFE. French Sports Minister Valerie Fourneyron "assured that this tax, created for next year, will have no exceptions," despite requests from the French Professional League (LFP). Fourneyron indicated that "French football should not follow the path of Spanish football, where 'clubs cannot pay their players.'" Referring to Paris St. Germain, with "Qatari capital" and Monaco, "with Russian money," Fourneyron said that it is "positive that millionaires who can pay impressive salaries have arrived in football, but they should not give off the feeling that there is an atmosphere with no regulation." Fourneyron: "It is important to maintain a competitive balance and allow investors to have a long-term vision" (EFE, 9/30).