Youth & High School

Youth Soccer Group Withholds Taxes of Coaches
Agreement could have implications across the country
August 6, 2007
The IRS and Fairfield United Soccer Association reached an agreement to treat the league's coaches not employed by professional coaching associations like employees rather than independent contractors and withhold taxes from their pay, the New York Times reported last week.

The Times also reported the league will pay some $11,600 in back taxes, part of the $334,441 the IRS assessed it in 2004.

“We said we tried to comply with the rules, and we thought we were, but we made mistakes, so we agreed to pay the tax due,” Jay Skelton, the league's president, told the Times. “For 20 years all of these coaches have been reported as 1099 employees for everybody. If you talk to 100 clubs, I guarantee almost every one, if not all, would declare these guys as independent contractors.”

“Unfortunately,” he added, “we became the test case.”

Skelton also told the Times he estimated that the ruling could increase the average cost for a student to play for a season to $335, up from $325.

The agreement may have huge implications on youth soccer associations across the country. According to the Times, sports officials in Connecticut and other states are now reviewing the tax code, with up to 200 people with youth sport connections contacting Skelton about the case.

“I certainly think it could have implications for youth soccer and for other youth sports as well,” Jim Cosgrove, executive director of the United States Youth Soccer Association, told the Times.