John Charlton has returned the 1966 World Cup winner's medal his father left him to his mother, Pat, to avoid a £200,000 inheritance tax bill.
Jack Charlton, who died in 2020 at the age of 85, partnered Bobby Moore in central defence when England beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time to lift the Jules Rimet trophy.
Tax bill avoidance
Speaking to Talksport, John explained: “It was left to me in my dad’s will, but the tax man wants £200,000 off me in inheritance tax.”
Asked whether he intended to sell the medal, he added: “No, I’ve given it back to my mother because whilst she’s got it, I don’t have to pay that money.” Transfers between married partners are not subject to inheritance tax. The standard inheritance tax rate is 40% on estates valued above £325,000.
Rare keepsake
John said his father and his uncle, the legendary Sir Bobby Charlton, are the only members of the triumphant 1966 England team to keep their medals. “Everybody else doesn’t have them anymore,” he said. Only eleven winners’ medals were handed out 60 years ago, all going to players who started the match, as substitutes were not allowed until the 1970 World Cup.
Sir Geoff Hurst, who scored a hat-trick in the final, is the last surviving England player from that famous match at Wembley on July 30, 1966.
Other memorabilia
Despite the inheritance tax row over the winner’s medal, the family still have other items from the tournament. John told Talksport: “Well, we’ve got his shirt as well. His shirt and his medal are in a safe place, tucked away. And the England cap that he got because he only got one cap for the tournament and that’s the only cap that he left. He gave the rest away.”
Jack Charlton won 35 caps for England between 1965 and 1970, scoring six goals. He spent his entire club career at Leeds United, where he won a league title, FA Cup, League Cup and two Inter-Cities Fairs Cups. After hanging up his boots, he managed Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday, Newcastle and the Republic of Ireland.
