Despite historic achievements in 2025, Rory McIlroy is missing from the New Year’s Honours List due to an HMRC tax investigation.
Irish golfer Rory McIlroy was considered a favorite for a knighthood by King Charles III alongside Tommy Fleetwood and Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald; however, all three golfers were omitted this year. In 2025, McIlroy completed his career Grand Slam by winning the Masters, becoming the first European to do so. He also shone at the 2025 Ryder Cup, helping Team Europe secure their first away victory since 2012 at Bethpage State Park near New York City.
Nonetheless, McIlroy’s name was absent from the 1,157 honorees on the New Year’s Honours List, which undergoes review firstly by the Cabinet Office and then by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) before being submitted to the Prime Minister and the monarch. According to a report by the British Telegraph, the HMRC intervened in the process, similar to the delay experienced by footballer David Beckham years ago.
Did Rory McIlroy Avoid Taxes Intentionally?
Recently named BBC Sports Personality of the Year, McIlroy was involved in urban renewal projects in Liverpool, Birmingham, and Sheffield in 2013, which were then classified as legal tax reliefs by authorities. However, HMRC later decided these projects constituted tax avoidance and is currently investigating whether they exploited the “Business Premises Renovation Allowance” scheme to deliberately evade taxes. So far, there is no evidence suggesting McIlroy intended to avoid paying taxes.
Since HMRC is involved in decisions about knighthoods, such a suspicion or ongoing investigation can lead to rejection. Neither McIlroy nor the British government has commented on the matter yet.