Taxing Sports

66 Pages Posted: 16 Sep 2021 Last revised: 3 Jul 2022

See all articles by John T. Holden

John T. Holden

Oklahoma State University

Kathryn Kisska-Schulze

Clemson University College of Business

Date Written: September 14, 2021

Abstract

Sports are no longer mere games. In today’s money-driven culture, they have cultivated into a lucrative business enterprise where everyone – whether professional or amateur; owner or player; coach or spectator – stands to make significant money. Modern sports have also morphed into a landscape encompassing both traditional athletic events, and the more novel esports and daily fantasy sports (DFS) arenas. Across all of these physical, digital, and biological spheres, sports revenues are being measured in terms of billions. It thus stands to reason why taxes have become a progressively critical discussion point within U.S. professional and collegiate sports, the videogaming world, and the newly-legalized sports gambling industry. This article is the first to provide a holistic and modern analysis of the impact of U.S. tax law across the contemporary business of sports, and to explore a more universal approach to the varying tax issues affecting numerous relevant stakeholders, including franchises, business ventures, universities, athletes, individuals, and federal and state taxing jurisdictions.

Keywords: Tax, sports, gambling, college sports, tax cuts, esports, daily fantasy sports, DFS, professional sports

JEL Classification: K34, H25, H26, K22, K42, M14

Suggested Citation

Holden, John and Kisska-Schulze, Kathryn, Taxing Sports (September 14, 2021). 71 American University Law Review 845 (2022), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3923757

John Holden (Contact Author)

Oklahoma State University ( email )

464 Business Building
Stillwater, OK 74078-0555
United States

Kathryn Kisska-Schulze

Clemson University College of Business ( email )

Clemson, SC 29631
United States

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