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Football icon John Barnes has been declared bankrupt after his company accumulated debts of £1.5 million ($2 million).
The bankruptcy notice, published in the London Gazette today (Sept 30), was issued under his full name - John Charles Bryan Barnes - following a petition filed by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in early August. The High Court of Justice issued it on September 23.
John Barnes Media Limited, his now-liquidated firm, had racked up debts surpassing £1.5 million ($2 million), according to HMRC. Liquidators' reports indicate that HMRC is due £776,878 ($1 million) in unpaid VAT, National Insurance, and PAYE, with an additional £461,849 ($620,000) owed to unsecured creditors and a director's loan of £226,000 ($304,000).
The former Liverpool and England winger, who earned 79 caps for England, has faced numerous bankruptcy petitions since 2010, including one in 2023 over a £238,000 ($320,000) personal tax bill that was settled at the eleventh hour.
Barnes, a resident of Heswall, Wirral, was prohibited from serving as a company director for three and a half years in 2023. This followed an Insolvency Service investigation which found his company failed to pay more than £190,000 ($255,000) in corporation tax and VAT between 2018 and 2020, despite a turnover of £441,798 ($595,000), reports the Mirror.
Mike Smith, the chief investigator at the service, stated that Barnes's failure to ensure taxes were paid "should serve as a deterrent to other directors".
This bankruptcy declaration comes just a month after Barnes candidly discussed his tax woes, stating: "I'm paying what I owe."
The star, who was the first £10,000-a-week player, said he has been paying HMRC for the past eight years after suffering heavy losses from poorly advised investments.
He spoke to the All Things Business podcast to clear up what he says are misleading reports about his financial affairs. Since 2017, Barnes said he had repaid around £2.2million ($3 million) and continues to pay £10,000 ($13,500) each month under arrangements agreed with the tax authority.
Speaking to the podcast the England star said: "I was making a lot of money, I was the first £10,000 a week footballer and benefited from that for a few years. Like a lot of elite sportspeople, I got burned because I trusted people, I got caught out a couple of times and ended up losing between £1m and £1.5m over four years.
"In 2017, I began talking to HMRC about what I could do to repay what I owed."
He said since then, when he has been served with petitions, he and his legal representatives have gone to court to make arrangements to pay because he does not want to be made bankrupt.
Barnes added: "I know how hard it is for people out there. I don't want to say there are loopholes, or that I can get away with this or that, or have people think I can be made bankrupt and keep my assets, because I've already sold everything. I don't have any assets.
"But every time something new comes up, stories appear in the press saying negative things about how I am not paying my taxes, even though I'm going to court, not to be made bankrupt, but to ask for permission to keep paying.
"Football is a working-class sport, and I don't want hard working people thinking I've got all this money and I won't pay tax. It would be easy to be made bankrupt because they can't take anything else from me."
He revealed that damaging reports about his financial situation had affected a consistent source of income - delivering talks on inclusion and diversity within the corporate world.
Barnes explained that due to these circumstances, several firms, especially those in banking and finance, had understandably ceased requesting his services as a speaker.
He mentioned that he continued to earn through professional commitments and refused to let his dispute with HMRC dampen his outlook on life.
"I've had a few sleepless nights, but it's not had a major impact because I look at the way the world is and there are lots of people struggling more than me.
"And as long as I am able to work and to pay, I am just thankful. What have I got to complain about? But what does matter is that I reassure people, and the reason I am speaking about this now is because the narrative around me is so negative.
"I have been so fortunate in my life to still be able to work and pay my bills and my kids have a roof over their head and food on the table.
"The only reason I'm doing this is because people have been saying things that are not true, and I don't want anyone thinking of me as John Barnes, ex-professional footballer, hiding all his money and not paying taxes."
Barnes has been approached for a response.
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