‘We were victims’ – I’m ex-England star who lost £5m in investment scandal and now want justice

Danny Murphy is among a group of Premier League stars demanding justice after falling victim to an investment scandal that cost millions.

The talkSPORT pundit bravely opened up on his involvement with the V11 campaign group, which comprises 11 footballers who invested with Kingsbridge Asset Management in the 1990s and 2000s.

Kingsbridge was founded in 1992, the same year that the Premier League‘s launch started a money boom across the industry.

From a client list that boasted more than 360 pro footballers, up to 200 are believed to have suffered huge financial loss.

Some have lost their homes. Some have been made bankrupt.

They are now being chased by HMRC for millions in tax, despite being told they were ‘victims of crime’ by the City of London Police.

David McKee and Kevin McMenamin, who ran Kingsbridge, denied wrongdoing on the documentary, ‘Football’s Financial Shame’.

Murphy revealed in the same broadcast that aired Tuesday night that he lost roughly £5 million because of ‘financial abuse’.

The former Liverpool player has previously admitted that the shame from the scandal saw him spiral into depression and addiction.

Murphy joined talkSPORT’s White & Jordan live from the studio the following morning to dissect the fallout from his documentary.

“Firstly, I’d just like to say thank you for all the calls, the positive messages. Couldn’t get back to everyone,” he began.

“[I’m] a bit tired because I was up on the phone talking to people last night, which is why I look like a bag of spanners. But anyway, that’s what the makeup helps with,” the ex-England star joked.

He continued: “It is a difficult topic. About 15 years ago, a bit less, Brian Deane and Jason Wilcox, two great guys, opened a can of worms regarding our financial situation and the advisors.

“The documentary is a little insight and a little window into that journey. And the criminality in it, the impact.

“I think the specialist spoke brilliantly. So many elements to it. It’s quite daunting, actually, to try and get through it. But we’ll try.”

Here, talkSPORT.com breaks down Murphy’s own account of his involvement with Kingsbridge and his ongoing hopes for justice.

What was the aim of the documentary?

“First and foremost, justice. We’re trying to get the case reopened.

“That would be massive for everyone because I think when you’re a victim of a crime or you feel like you’ve been hard done by, you want to see punishment. You want to see right.

PA

Getty

“And we haven’t seen that, which is unfortunate because the City of London Police did arrest them and have an investigation that failed. But we’ll talk about that.

“The other thing is a bit more complicated in a change of law at HMRC because, as it stands right now, they’re not really in a position where they can give any leniency or look at us differently to those who avoid tax deliberately.

“If you’ve invested in anything, a financial investment where you haven’t had any financial gain or there’s been criminality or you’re a victim of fraud, you are treated the same and you are still pursued for the tax in the same way, which is ridiculous in my view and has a huge impact on many people, not just the group involved in this documentary.

“The other thing is probably an education and awareness.

“Making this more of a public topic helps, especially in terms of MPs, Parliament. We’ve been strong in that department for a couple of years now.

“Getting into football clubs to speak to young players is the aim for us, which we’ve already started the journey of. They’d be the main, the main three reasons why we did the documentary.”

Why were some players not involved in the documentary?

Up to 200 footballers may have been affected by the scandal, but only 11 of those have formed the V11 campaign group.

Murphy said: “Although, to be honest with you, Jim, I was a bit reluctant to do it first. And there’s only 11 of us, but there’s over 200, 300 footballers and more from other financial advisors as well, but just specifically under Kingsbridge.

“So many of them didn’t join the plight because of fear, maybe shame, or embarrassment.

“I think it’s hard when you’re in a position where you do well and then you mess it up because you do feel like an idiot.

“A lot of the lads, and I won’t name them individually, but a lot of the lads who are bigger, high-profile people than me, decided they didn’t want that fight and that journey.

Getty

“And that’s understandable because people deal with stress in different ways. The mental health side of it is a tough one for people to expose stuff as intimate as this.

“We ended up being this small group who, I have to say, wouldn’t probably still be around each other if we hadn’t had the specialist with us.

“Craig Short’s wife, Carly, she’s a lawyer, but she’s been the leader of this. And I just got to give two guys a mention who have an investigative company who took on our case years ago, this jigsaw puzzle, and spent nearly two years working for free, Craig and Dave, former detectives themselves, and actually put this together for us.

“Incredible kindness from so many specialists. Simon Myerson, QC. So many people helped us get to where we are today.”

2009 Getty Images

How Kingsbridge was given access to young footballers

Kingsbridge built up its credibility through its relationship with the League Managers Association, having been publicly endorsed by then-chairman Howard Wilkinson, who also managed Leeds and England.

“When you’re a young footballer, early twenties, and there’s nobody in most of the lads’ families who’ve got any experience with money or investment, you tend to confide in the other players, senior boys at the club, like England internationals in my case, who were looked after by them,” Murphy continued.

“So I kind of felt safety in numbers. They looked after managers. They looked after Martin O’Neill, Howard Wilkinson.

“This was a glossy brochure with an already established portfolio of people. How could you go wrong?

“Then what they do is cleverly worm their way into your life and become friends and family, if you like.

“Then you stupidly, naively, if you like, put your trust in them.

“Don’t get me wrong, you had those moments of reflection where you look back and think, ‘What the hell was I doing? Why would I do that?’

“But you have to get past it. It was a free-for-all back then.

“The Premier League, as [former Crystal Palace owner] Simon [Jordan] knows, was booming. And the more wealth, the more sharks.

“As we progressed and the wages got bigger, more people got involved in trying to guide you on how to spend that money and save that money and use that money. So that was the start of it.”

talkSPORT

“I think if I were on the outside and I didn’t know the details, I’d probably have a lot less sympathy,” Murphy continued in his response to critics who chalk his experience down to nothing more than young, naive footballers making bad decisions.

“But what this documentary does is gives you details.

“If you read enough about it and listen to the people who know more than I, the specialists, then you’ll see it. It’s obvious. It’s there.

“The disappointment was that the City of London Police didn’t get it over the line, which, as I say, I’m really hopeful we’re going to get the case reopened, which would be fantastic.

“During COVID, we’re looking at manpower. We’re looking at money. We’re looking at a complex fraud. There were reasons they didn’t get over the line.

“Some of it was poor mistakes on their part, I think, in terms of the different cases they went for. And so there were so many to choose from. But it’s kind of water under the bridge.

“There’s a lot of momentum now in getting it reopened, which I think would be a big win.”

Being classed as ‘victims of crime’

In 2018, the City of London Police opened an investigation that saw two men arrested, but two years later, it was concluded there was ‘insufficient evidence to support a realistic prospect of conviction’.

Despite this, the force admitted they were ‘victims of crime’.

Murphy explained: “That was a big turning point for us, I mean, it seems contradictory, doesn’t it? That they didn’t get over the line, but called us victims of crime, officially.

“That was a big deal for us because it helped our fight then. Because all of a sudden, you’re not just a victim.

“You’ve not just got your violin out and are saying we’ve made some bad decisions; we were badly advised. That’s not what it was.

“We were victims of crime, and the crime was fraud, and it was good fraud – complex, very detailed, very clever, very manipulative, spread across Europe, the world, America, Spain, all these different things.

“So the fact that that happened and they officially class us victims of crime actually gave it in a way gave us validation for the journey we’ve been on.”

BBC

BBC

What is the endgame?

“Justice would be great, and the law change would be great as well because it would benefit others, probably not benefit me so much now.

I’ve given nearly everything, but the reality is I’m quite resilient about it now. I mean, the documentary was made a couple of years ago.

“I had a lot of people asking me, ‘Are you all right?’ I think they watched telly and think it was made last week.”

Danny Murphy’s final thoughts

“I’ve come through a lot. I’ve actually learned a lot as well, going into places like HMRC. I spoke at the House of Commons. I’ve been in at the Premier League with [former CEO of the Premier League, Richard] Scudamore, who was great by the way, in the early days.
He gave us a little bit of help.

“I’ve been in with the PFA. I’ve learned so much. I’ve been in rooms with lawyers.

“I’ve grown because of it, even though it’s been hell at times. And those experiences make you stronger. I feel like I’ve come through the worst of it, thank God. But some resolution would be nice.

“Yeah, some justice. I think we all want that if you feel like you’ve been wronged.”

No charges were ever brought. David McKee and Kevin McMenamin, who ran Kingsbridge, deny all allegations of wrongdoing.