Be A Good Sport
We are currently enjoyed a fabulous summer of sport – with the Euros in Germany, followed by the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The 34th summer Olympics saw 329 Gold Medals up for grabs in 32 different sports; and Team GB sent 327 athletes, competing across 24 different sports.
We were excited to see Kent-based Nathan Hales win a Gold in trap shooting, breaking the Olympic record in the process. Over the years as a firm, we have been proud to have counted sportspeople as clients, including one who shot for both Kent and England.
Around 10,500 athletes took part in the Paris games but they didn’t travel alone. In addition to friends and family in the stands, the majority of athletes also had coaches supporting them.
Here at Lewis & Co, we have a number of sports academies and coaches among our clients. These include tennis coaches, football coaches and golf pros (who typically teach golf at local clubs, in addition to taking part in tournaments themselves).
Some sports coaches are self-employed, while others set themselves up with a limited company. In either case, we are there to assist these clients to complete their accounts in the most tax-efficient manner.
While coaches will have many of the same business issues as other clients, there are aspects that are different. For a start, their business could be seasonal, depending on the sport, and we can look at ways of supporting them to write a business plan to take this into account.
In addition, it’s likely they will be travelling between venues – either for competition purposes or for training. They will typically also have kit and equipment which need to be purchased for their particular sports or team. In some cases, a coach might need to buy a vehicle for transporting their particular kit and even a minibus to drive a team around in. Again, we can advise on the tax implications of any such purchase.
In some cases, the sports team or individual they are coaching might be granted sponsorship and we can look at the implications of that on their business and reporting for tax purposes.
The Olympics has also seen some of the world’s top athletes step into retirement and this was the case for GB tennis champion, Andy Murray.
It is never too early to start planning for your retirement. Knowing when you are looking to retire and how much you need to save are key in order to live the way you want to live later in life. We can help you calculate what you need to be putting aside and the best means to do so according to your circumstances.
Here at Lewis & Co we assist many clients in planning for retirement and with their business exit strategies. We will find ways to provide you with a continued stream of income, using the most tax efficient methods, considering the income you need to maintain a comfortable lifestyle based on your individual needs. We constantly strive to maximise your wealth whilst minimising your tax liabilities.
If you’ve got any questions at all, then please do contact us on 01892 513515 or info@lewisandco.biz