Legendary jockey Frankie Dettori has been unable unable to pay his £765,000 tax debt following the liquidation of his companies.
The 55-year-old said last year he had been left ’embarrassed’ after being forced to file for bankruptcy having failed to find an agreement with HMRC over his long-running tax avoidance case.
On Wednesday, Companies House published an update to the liquidation of Frankie Dettori Limited and Newmarket Activities Limited showing there were no funds to repay the debts.
The total amount owed to HMRC as of last October was £765,000 and £6,391 to a car leasing company.
When combined with liquidator costs the total reached £888,799.
The world’s most famous flat jockey stopped riding in Britain in October 2023 but shelved plans to retire by deciding to take up a new opportunity in the United States.
Frankie Dettori (right) – pictured here at Royal Ascot in 2024 with the Duchess of Edinburgh – was unable to pay his £765,000 tax debt after being made bankrupt
Dettori is one of the sport’s most recognisable figures and propelled racing to a wider audience with his persona and charismatic personality
He’s ridden more than 3300 winners during his career and his final 30 successes in the UK gained connections £5.5million.
His financial situation became public knowledge when his plea for anonymity was dismissed by the High Court.
The case was brought against Dettori after he had employed a specialist advisor to look after his and family’s financial affairs.
Dettori has admitted this was a grievous error, one that is going to have long term ramifications.
Last year he said he was ‘working hard to unravel the mess that I have been put in’ by the financial adviser.
It is estimated that he amassed between £15-£20m in earnings from racing alone, with his best year for prize money being 2019 when horses he rode on £7.3m.
The latest report said: ‘Assuming that realisations and expenses are as anticipated, it is not expected that there will be a return to unsecured creditors due to insufficient funds. This is subject to change based on the final outcome of our investigations.’
The charismatic Italian, who is finally set to retire from racing later this year, will be automatically discharged from bankruptcy on March 17.
When the news came to light, he reflected: ‘I am saddened and embarrassed by this outcome and would advise others to take a stronger rein over their financial matters.
‘Bankruptcy is a major decision and its consequences will affect me for many years.’
The strategy, which a financial adviser proposed, involved making large ‘tax-deductible’ payments, over five years, into a trust which then made large ‘non-taxable’ payments back to him.
Queen Elizabeth II presents Dettori with a winners prize at Ascot Racecourse in October 2017
They call this ‘disguised remuneration’ and HMRC deemed the trust a sham.
‘He signed some documents and claimed that, even though nothing really changed, he now owed a lot less tax,’ Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, an independent tax think tank previously told Daily Mail Sport.
‘The idea the payments to the trust were tax-deductible is beyond stupid.’
Dettori is currently on a tour of South America and his final rides will be in Brazil.
After he closes that chapter on a 35-year racing career he will stay in the sport, taking a full-time position as global brand ambassador for Amo Racing.
