The long running tax battle between Football Pools operator Sportech plc and Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is set to continue after Sportech announced that it has lodged an application for permission from the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) to appeal to the Court of Appeal in relation to the VAT repayment claim on the ‘Spot the Ball’ game.
After years of court appearances, Sportech had eventually been paid £93m in June this year by Customs after arguing that it had overpaid its VAT on the Spot the Ball competitions for decades and that in fact the game should be exempt from VAT.
However in September, it was told to pay that money back when the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) ruled in favour of Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs in HMRC’s appeal case.
Sportech had originally made the claim back in March 2009 for a £40m refund for VAT paid in error on Spot the Ball in the period from 1979 to 1996. More than five years later and the figure has more than doubled, but a resolution feels as distant as ever.