The former England footballer, 51, who played for Queens Park Rangers, West Ham and Manchester City, and earned 12 caps for England, was told by a judge he was bankrupt over a £36,000 unpaid tax debt.
Sinclair’s case was heard at Central London County Court, where it was revealed that he owed £36,424 to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including more than £13,000 from work as a television and radio commentator.
The debt came to light following the death of Sinclair’s accountant, who had been handling his financial affairs.
Judge Caroline Wilkinson granted the bankruptcy order in Sinclair’s absence after noting he had failed to respond to correspondence or attend hearings.
She said: “Mr Sinclair is not in attendance today and no proposals have been put forward for paying his debt.
“In the circumstances, the court finds that Mr Sinclair is unable to pay his debts as they fall due and it will make the bankruptcy order.”
At a previous hearing in April, barrister Shabab Rizvi, representing HMRC, said: “The debtor is a former Premier League footballer and should have the means to satisfy the debt, but there’s been no contact with HMRC at all.”
Sinclair’s lawyer, Robert Lee, had asked for an adjournment at the time, explaining his client was working in the media and had recently received a job offer in Saudi Arabia.
He argued the debt arose due to Sinclair being wrongly treated as self-employed.
Judge Wilkinson agreed to delay proceedings to give Sinclair the opportunity to consider alternatives, including an individual voluntary arrangement, but no such proposals were made.
Sinclair began his professional football career at Blackpool and rose to prominence with a spectacular bicycle-kick goal for QPR against Barnsley in 1997, which won Match of the Day’s Goal of the Season.
He was part of England’s squad at the 2002 World Cup, making four appearances.
After retiring in 2008, he moved into media work, becoming a regular pundit on television and radio.
His broadcasting career came to a halt in 2022 following controversial comments on social media in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, in which he questioned why “black and brown people” were mourning the monarch.
