This paper analyzes the impact of the French 75% income tax rate on the attractiveness of the French soccer league. The concerns are less about its financial implications for clubs than about the possible decrease in its attractiveness. A classical model of professional team sport leagues is employed to measure the Nash equilibrium competitive balance and the stock of talent to assess the effect of the new taxation. We then propose two hypotheses corresponding to specific situations in the French soccer league: “social and fiscal disparities between clubs” and “sugar daddy” behavior. The new model predicts a polarization of the league and an exodus of talent, which could be mitigated by revenue sharing.

Text available on https://dspace.stir.ac.uk/bitstream/1893/24067/1/aIJSF11_3_Scelles_etal.pdf or http://e-space.mmu.ac.uk/625412/