Ex-Liverpool star urges British PM to take action after falling victim to 'fraud' scheme

Top footballers are demanding a VAR-style review of the millions they owe in tax penalties.

Former Premier League stars have written to the Prime Minister calling for an end to a decade-long saga that has left them owing the cash despite being recognised as victims of fraud. The group, known as the V11, includes ex-Manchester United and England striker Andy Cole, former Leeds striker Brian Deane, and Danny Murphy, who played for Liverpool and Fulham.

They wrote to Sir Keir Starmer to say: "We are still facing the prospect of HMRC enforcement, despite being recognized by the police as victims. We are unable to move on or rebuild our lives."

The letter followed the launch of the V11 Foundation in Parliament, at which players told how they were manipulated into failed investments that left them owing millions in tax penalties to HMRC.

Some claim the Government's tax operation lacks the capability or will to pursue the real criminals behind such schemes. Up to 200 footballers may be involved, with some losing their homes or being declared bankrupt.

Carly Barnes-Short, co-chair of the investment fraud committee, said: "It's a huge injustice. These young men were exploited by those they trusted to look after their money."

Murphy, 48, now a pundit for the BBC and TalkSport who claims he has lost £5 million ($6.7M) alone, said: "I couldn't think of a more brilliant place than a football club to find victims."

He explained how players would turn to teammates or managers for financial guidance, only to find themselves connected with exploitative advisers. Deane, 57, revealed that some former players had been driven to the edge of suicide.

"I watched it break friends' marriages," he said.

The footballers were introduced to financial schemes promoted as HMRC-approved or commonly utilized throughout the sport. Years later, HMRC retrospectively reclassified the arrangements as tax avoidance, issuing bills totalling millions.

Police determined that criminal fraud was involved in the promotion of the schemes that V11 members entered. However, HMRC has continued to pursue its tax liabilities.

It said it has a duty to collect tax when it is legally due.

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