LaLiga president, Javier Tebas, has claimed that Spain’s high tax rate, contributed to Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from Real Madrid and is preventing the league from growing.
Ronaldo left Real Madrid after nine seasons to join Juventus in a €100 million transfer earlier this month.
The top tax rate in Italy is 46.29 percent, compared to 52 percent in Spain.
“His departure to Italy favours him because he will earn more money than here,” Tebas told Marca TV.
“From an international view, in Spain we have a problem that we can’t compete from a fiscal standpoint.
“When it comes to having the same [wage] offer from Real Madrid, Ronaldo gets more net by being in Italy. That must have added when it came to him making the decision.
“In the big leagues, the worst fiscal treatment players get is in Spain. When you earn big sums of money then that small difference is already a lot of money for a player.
“We have to work on this because having this fiscal situation penalises us and prevents us from growing as a competition.”
Last month, reports said Ronaldo had reached a deal with Spanish tax authorities, to serve a two-year suspended sentence and pay an €18.8m ($21.8m) fine in a tax evasion case.