The billionaire brothers who founded gambling giant Betfred have topped a list of the UK’s 100 biggest taxpayers, according to The Sunday Times Tax List. The list also includes celebrities such as Harry Styles, Anthony Joshua, and JK Rowling.
Fred and Peter Done, who established the Warrington-based business in 1967, lead the annual ranking for the first time, with an estimated £400.1m paid in tax over the past year.
Erling Haaland, the 25-year-old Manchester City player, is the youngest individual on the list at number 72, with a projected tax contribution of £16.9m. Liverpool’s Mo Salah is believed to have a tax bill of £14.5m.
The compilation reveals that the top 100 taxpayers collectively contributed £5.758bn, an increase from the £4.985bn recorded the previous year.
JK Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series and a regular on the list, is ranked 36th with a £47.5m tax bill. Musician Ed Sheeran is listed at 64th, having paid £19.9m, while boxer Anthony Joshua is 100th with a contribution of £11m.
Harry Styles, the former One Direction member and current solo artist, made a tax payment of £24.7m and is a new entry on the list.
Wetherspoon founder Sir Tim Martin appeared eighth on the list with a tax contribution of an estimated £199.7m.
The Done brothers, whose estimated bill rose from £273.4m in last year’s Sunday Times list, were among 45 of the top 100 taxpayers found to have been paying more than last year.
According to the list’s compilers, the increase in tax paid by the top 100 is partly attributable to the rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%, introduced in 2023 by the previous government, as well as a higher tax rate on dividends.
The siblings built a business empire from betting shops, accumulating a billion-pound family fortune after leaving school at 15 with no qualifications.
Financial trading entrepreneur Alex Gerko was second on the list with £331.4m in tax, followed by hedge fund boss Chris Rokos, who paid £330m.
Six taxpayers are featured on the list despite having left the UK in the past year, amid reports of wealthy individuals relocating to avoid higher taxes and the end of non-dom status.
They include Revolut founder Nik Storonsky, Wren Kitchens’ Malcolm Healey and sports promoter Eddie Hearn.
According to the Sunday Times list, the top 10 UK taxpayers are:
Robert Watts, who compiled the list, stated: “This is an increasingly diverse list, with Premier League footballers and world famous pop stars lining up alongside aristocrats and business owners selling pies, pillows and baby milk.
“This year there’s been a big jump in the amount of tax we’ve identified – largely because of higher corporation tax rates.”
HMRC does not comment on individual cases so the BBC cannot verify the estimates provided by the Times.
Correction – a previous version of this story wrongly stated that many on the list were paying more after changes to corporation tax rates and other taxes by the Labour government – the increase to corporation tax was actually made in 2023 by the previous Conservative government.
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