IainB

You've hit the nail on the head here, the PL & CL are not individual entities so why, with such small numbers, aren't they riding in the same league to prove that? Without a TV deal (and the sponsorship that brings) and without a sudden unexpected rise in crowd numbers all clubs are (financially) Championship level clubs.

Peterborough, Birmingham, Rye House

... and I bet their players can't be seen turning out for another team in this country let alone abroad and I believe that there is no individual championship for players either, their player plays for their club only, maybe also at international level for their country, forgive my ignorance I have zero knowledge of the sport but I'm guessing that's the case because that's how team sport is run.

Great to see that NOTHING has been learnt from the Birmingham episode!

Yes he is trying to sell the club... he ain't going to run it down is he 🤷‍♂️

I think in effect without the TV money and sponsorship that directly brought in, EVERY club is in effect a Championship club

Topic already exists

That's my channel... Hope you gave it a "like" 👍🏻

And Swindon

I shall be asking you questions about it later 😂

From Google Gemini: For a foreign rider to legally work and be paid in the UK, they need to follow UK immigration rules, which typically involve: International Sportsperson Visa: Foreign riders usually require an International Sportsperson Visa. Governing Body Endorsement (GBE): To get the visa, the rider must be endorsed by the sport's governing body, British Speedway. This process involves the club acting as a licensed sponsor. Contract Details for Visa: The contract between the rider and the licensed sponsor (the club) must be robust and submitted as part of the endorsement process, detailing the rider's assessed earnings for the season, including how they are made up (e.g., payment per point, vans, mechanics). This ensures the salary and conditions are at least equal to those normally given to a resident worker for the same role. The tax arrangements for foreign speedway riders involve special rules designed for non-resident sportspeople and artists. Here is a breakdown of how a foreign rider's UK income tax is handled: 1. Withholding Tax (The First Step) The immediate and most common way tax is paid is via Withholding Tax (WHT). Payer's Obligation: The UK speedway club (the payer) is legally obliged to deduct tax from the rider's payment before the rider receives it. Rate: This is typically deducted at the UK's basic rate of income tax, which is 20%. Threshold: This withholding tax usually applies to gross payments exceeding the UK Personal Allowance (the amount an individual can earn tax-free, which is around $\text{\textsterling}12,570$ in most recent tax years). Purpose: The deducted 20% is a "payment on account" against the rider's eventual final UK tax bill. 2. Self-Assessment and Deducting Expenses Since speedway riders are considered self-employed contractors for UK tax purposes, the WHT is often not their final tax liability. UK Tax Return: A rider will usually need to register for UK Self-Assessment and file a UK tax return at the end of the tax year. This is mandatory if their net profits exceed the basic rate band (around $\text{\textsterling}50,000$). Deductible Expenses: The tax return allows the rider to claim legitimate business expenses, which significantly reduces their taxable income. These include: Travel and accommodation costs while in the UK (flights, local transport, rent). Costs of professional equipment (engines, tyres, kevlar). Wages paid to mechanics and support staff. Final Tax Calculation: The final UK income tax is calculated on the net profit (earnings minus expenses). If the tax due on the net profit is less than the 20% already withheld, the rider can claim a refund from HMRC (the UK tax authority). If the net profit is high, the rider may be liable for the higher rate of UK income tax (40% or 45%) and will have to pay the additional amount due. 3. Taxation of Global Income (Sponsorship) This is the most complex part for international sportspeople: Apportionment of Income: A non-resident rider is generally subject to UK tax on the portion of their worldwide sponsorship or endorsement income that relates to their activities in the UK. Time Spent: The UK taxable proportion is often calculated by comparing the number of days the rider spent performing or training in the UK to the total number of days spent performing/training worldwide. $$ \text{UK Taxable Endorsement Income} = \text{Global Endorsement Income} \times \frac{\text{UK Days}}{\text{Worldwide Days}} $$ 4. Double Taxation Agreements (DTA) To prevent the rider from paying tax on the same income in both the UK and their home country (e.g., Poland, Australia, Denmark), Double Taxation Agreements come into effect. Tax Credit: Under a DTA, the tax the rider pays to the UK (the source country) is typically used as a tax credit to reduce the amount of tax they owe in their home country (the residence country). Tax Residency: The rider's overall tax residency (based on the number of days they spend in each country) determines which country gets the primary right to tax their worldwide income, but the DTA ensures they are not taxed twice. In summary, the rider will have 20% tax withheld by the club, and then they must file a UK Self-Assessment tax return to reconcile their full income and claim expenses. Finally, they use the UK tax paid as a credit against their tax bill back home. Would you like to know which countries the UK has a Double Taxation Agreement with that are relevant to speedway riders? For foreign speedway riders, the most relevant Double Taxation Agreements (DTAs) are those with countries that supply the majority of international talent to the British leagues. The UK has DTAs with almost all major nations, and specifically with the most significant sources of foreign speedway riders. 🏁 Key Double Taxation Agreements for Speedway Riders The UK has comprehensive DTAs with the following countries, which are major sources of speedway talent: Country Rider Tax Residency Principle DTA Article Summary Poland Source Rule The DTA allows the UK to tax income earned from professional activities performed in the UK. The tax paid in the UK is then credited against the rider's Polish tax liability. Denmark Source Rule Similar to Poland, the UK has the right to tax income arising from activities performed at UK speedway tracks. Australia Source Rule The UK retains the right to tax the rider's UK-sourced income, with Australia providing a credit for the UK tax paid. Sweden Source Rule The DTA ensures that the rider's UK earnings are taxable in the UK first. How the DTAs Affect the Rider While DTAs are complex, for a speedway rider, the crucial point is typically covered under the "Artistes and Sportspersons" article (usually Article 17 or 18 in most treaties). This article generally states two key things: Right to Tax at Source: The country where the activities take place (the UK) has the right to tax the income derived from those activities. This is why the UK club withholds 20% tax. Credit Method: The rider's home country (their country of tax residency) must then allow the rider a tax credit for the UK tax that has already been paid on that income. Example Scenario (Australian Rider): An Australian rider earns $\text{\textsterling}30,000$ in UK speedway income. The UK club withholds and pays $\text{\textsterling}6,000$ (20%) tax to HMRC. The rider files a UK Self-Assessment to claim expenses and finalise their liability. The rider declares their total worldwide income (including the $\text{\textsterling}30,000$ UK income) on their Australian tax return. Australia calculates the tax due on the total income, then grants the rider a tax credit for the $\text{\textsterling}6,000$ already paid to the UK. This system ensures that the income is not taxed twice and that the rider ultimately pays the higher of the two countries' tax rates on that specific income.

Any chance of getting the Spotify library up to date? Or even making it available on other podcast platforms, it's quite inconvenient (for me and probably others) to have to sit down to watch it on YouTube, especially as it's not essential to see your lovely faces 😁

With a couple of GTR engines under his arms? 😂 ... Another stonking investment from British Speedway

I said as much a few weeks back

I've seen some pointless arguments on this forum but this one takes the biscuit!

To be fair we don't know, but if it was profitable you'd expect them to not be selling

Results wise maybe but Sheffield is currently up for sale because the owner's business can't cover the losses the club makes and if rumours are to be believed the Leicester owner also wants out and who can blame him as that same Sheffield owner took us up, moved us to Thursday nights, saw the crowds drop and sold up.

Shocking numbers... hey but Dan Bewley & Robert Lambert!

All 3 of those can be addressed if the will is there

I'm not so sure about that... there has only been 1 thing that has kept British Speedway going in its current form since the turn of the millenium and the rise of Poland & the SGP series... and that is a tv deal. The current implosion was always going to happen when that particular golden teat ran dry and anybody with any foresight would have known this. Now that tv deal has gone it's time to cut our cloth accordingly, get the sport in order and fit for purpose as a sporting entertainment event and who knows in the future the powers that be maybe able to approach a tv company with a proposal of bringing in top stars for a proper tv deal and not the peanuts that has been received over the last 5 years or so.

What you're not taking into account are the number of riders that have given the sport up over the last few years, many of them youngsters. If the costs could be kept under control there are still people out there that want to take the sport up. You're looking at a snapshot, you're also looking at the business as usual model 7 rider teams, what the sport needs imo is an amalgamation of all 3 leagues into 1 league with a race format meaning that Jack Smith (a capable Speedway rider at his level) isn't racing against the likes of Chris Harris/Richard Lawson all the time, it's maybe even time to introduce handicap racing which used to be the norm in the US, not sure if it still is. There was a big watering down of the CL a couple or 3 years back and nobody liked it, nobody even talks and probably remembers that now. I know from my own club that crowds are visibly lower in the PL on a Monday/Thursday than they were in the CL on a Saturday night... and that's a FACT 😁 Would you have been so vocal about the survival of the top flight when Ipswich were running in the 2nd tier from 2011 to 2018, would you have been so insistent that your club should be forced to have moved up to save the top tier? I'd also be intrigued to know why you think the BAU model will work when it's been proven not to work over the last 20 years... and that was WITH a tv contract?

It would appear so

Those 2 miles to get from the east of Leicester to the west can take the best part of half an hour at the time folk would be travelling... not that it's going to happen in a million years!

To use the Tiger's academy meeting as an example is not really fair, it was very much after the Lord Mayors show on a dark October evening asking fans to turn out to watch a bunch of riders they have zero affinity with. And I did say new Speedway fans. NDL is pitifully attended, that's because it shouldn't be being sold as a product and should be being included as part of the senior teams race night package imo. All clubs crowds are pitifully attended in the terms of other "professional" sports with maybe only County Championship cricket being the exception, but they certainly make up for that with the other formats of their sport, in fact you could possibly compare the County Championship to our NDL. @mikebv has pretty much covered the rest 👍

I think the BSPL actively put a stop to clubs running from different tracks didn't they?