Payments for Image Rights

Co-founder & Managing Partner

Richard Watts-Joyce

Richard is a founder and Managing Partner of GTN, assisting high net-worth individuals, professional sportspersons, and entertainers with both domestic and international tax planning and compliance.

With an impressive career spanning over 25 years, Richard has established himself as a leading authority in international tax consulting. His clients include professionals from various sports, ranging from football, tennis, motorsport, rugby, cycling, to NBA and NFL. Richard collaborates closely with players, families, agents, as well as a trusted network of wealth managers and lawyers, providing tailored and proactive solutions for domestic players while also possessing a unique expertise in international transfers. In addition to working with athletes, Richard assists several premier league and EFL clubs, looking after the tax issues of their senior executives, directors, international scouts, and remote workers, whilst providing financial education training for academy, U21, and professional players in both men’s and women’s football.

Richard’s influence extends beyond GTN, as a joint founder of the WTS Sports Group, a global network of international tax advisers specialising in the taxation of professional sportspersons relocating or competing internationally. Additionally, he serves as the EMEA Regional Lead of the Mobile Workforce Collaborative, significantly expanding GTN‘s service coverage to over 100 countries.

Richard’s background includes a BSc Honours Degree from the London School of Economics and membership of both leading professional tax bodies in the UK, the Association of Taxation Technicians and Chartered Institute of Taxation.

Tax Manager

Rob Derienzo

Rob is a private client tax manager and co-lead of the GTN Sports and Entertainment Tax Team. Rob has extensive experience in international tax planning and compliance for actors, producers, visual effects designers and models in the entertainment sector and has worked with many well-known artists helping to navigate the complexities of their global tax needs.

Rob also looks after our sports clients and has assisted a number of premier league and EFL footballers with tax compliance, tax return preparation and tax relief claims as well as planning in connection with agent fees and image rights. In addition to domestic leagues, Rob has also assisted players transferring to or from the UK, working with our partner firms to create bespoke global tax mitigation strategies.

Rob also assists clubs with global mobility tax issues including tax and social security compliance requirements for international scouts and non-resident directors. As part of our financial education program, Rob also provides valuable advice to academy and younger players helping them understand their basic tax requirements with HMRC, how wages and investments are taxed and how to identify and choose regulated advisers in financial planning and accounting.