Swedish football agent charged with tax fraud for millions

by Jens Littorin, Dagens Nyheter, Sweden

One of Sweden’s most well-known football agents has been charged with tax fraud and for breaking the laws concerning proper accounting.  Kent Carlzon has several star players on his client list and he is suspected of having intentionally neglected to account for 5,5 million Swedish Crowns in connection with sale of football players.

The scandal runs so deep that one of Sweden’s most well-known football players has also been charged and a leading football reporter has been forced to leave his job.

Kent Carlzon had an account in Luxemburg. Into that account players like Anders Svensson, Mikael Nilsson, Michael Svensson and Stefan Selakovic paid 3,2 million Swedish Crowns in provisions after becoming professional players abroad.

The police detected the account when officers searched Carlzon’s office as part of an investigation into tax fraud against the football club ” IFK Göteborg” and their newly purchased star player Stefan Selakovic.

Chief prosecutor, Lars Lithner, accuses Carlzon of intentionally having neglected to account for a total of 5,5 million Swedish Crowns in his two companies.  He is also suspected of intentionally having declared too low incomes for his companies to the taxation authorities for a total of 1,5 million Swedish Crowns. He has allegedly gone as far as adding fake expenses to his personal tax return.

Carlzon risks several years in prison.

The affair has affected Carlzon’s clients. The star player, Anders Svensson, formerly playing for the Premier League team Southampton, now playing for Swedish club Elfsborg, was called in for questioning by the police between matches in the end game for the league title.

Carlzon’s players are not under suspicion – with one exception.

Stefan Selakovic from ”IFK Göteborg” is suspected of having taken a signing-on-bonus of six million Swedish Crowns from the club “IFK Göteborg” whereas the club records only show an expense of 4,25 million Swedish Crowns.

Selakovic allegedly sent the surplus back to the club’s accountant in Luxemburg. Thereby IFK Göteborg could finance  the transfer of the Nigerian player, Peter Ijeh, another of Carlzon’s players.

In addition, the accountant Jan Nilsson  and the club manager, Mats Persson, are facing charges of serious tax fraud. The trial against IFK Göteborg officials begins next year.

In connection with this scandal, it was revealed that Olof Lundh, one of Sweden’s famous football reporters, had been paid money under the table for work he had done for Kent Carlzon. Mr Lundh points out that he only did minor translating work for Carlzon's website from 2000-2004. This was something he himself admitted to his newspaper and not something that was revealed by the investigation by the police.

Lundh was forced to leave his position at the newspaper “Expressen".  He now works for TV4, a Swedish television channel.