Despite historic achievements in 2025, Rory McIlroy is absent from the New Year’s Honours List due to an HMRC tax review.
Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy was among the favorites for a knighthood by King Charles III, alongside Tommy Fleetwood and Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald. However, all three golfers were excluded this year. In 2025, McIlroy completed his career Grand Slam by winning the Masters, becoming the first European to achieve this. 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.
Despite these achievements, McIlroy’s name was not listed among the 1,157 honorees on the New Year’s Honours List, which is first reviewed by the Cabinet Office and then by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the UK tax authority, before final approval by the Prime Minister and monarch. According to a report by The Telegraph, HMRC intervened in a similar manner as it did in the delayed knighthood of footballer David Beckham, who had to wait several years.
Did Rory McIlroy Intentionally Avoid Taxes?
McIlroy, recently named BBC Sports Personality of the Year, was involved in urban renewal projects in Liverpool, Birmingham, and Sheffield in 2013 that qualified as legal tax reliefs and were initially approved by authorities. Later, HMRC ruled these projects constituted tax avoidance and is currently investigating whether the ‘Business Premises Renovation Allowance’ scheme was exploited to intentionally evade taxes. So far, there is no evidence that McIlroy deliberately tried to avoid tax payments.
Since HMRC influences the knighthood decisions, such a tax inquiry can lead to a rejection of the honor. Neither McIlroy nor the British government has commented on the matter to date.