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Own Luxury Homes® Sport-by-Sport Jock Tax Exposure Index™
Own Luxury Homes® Sport-by-Sport Jock Tax Exposure Index™: annual jock tax burden by sport on a standardized $10M salary. MLB (162 games): $800K-$1.2M/yr on FL team; $2.5M-$4M/yr on CA/NY team — highest exposure due to 81 away games across 29 cities. NBA (82 games): $450K-$700K/yr (FL team). NFL (17 games): $250K-$450K/yr (FL team) — lowest per-season exposure but Super Bowl location creates significant spikes (Darnold Super Bowl LX: ~$198K on $178K check). Own Luxury Homes® 12-Point Agent Integrity Audit™.
Own Luxury Homes® Sport-by-Sport Jock Tax Exposure Index™
The jock tax burden is not equal across sports. An MLB player plays 162 games across 29 different opponent cities. An NFL player plays 17. An NBA player plays 82. The number of away games in income-tax states — combined with how each sport defines duty days — determines the total jock tax exposure for a full season. This Index quantifies the expected annual jock tax burden by sport on a standardized $10M salary, and shows why domicile strategy is more valuable in some sports than others.
01 — Jock Tax Burden by Sport: Standardized $10M Salary
The following analysis uses a standardized $10M annual salary for cross-sport comparison. Tax liability is estimated based on typical away-game schedules in income-tax states for a player on a Florida-based team (best-case) vs. a player on a California or New York-based team (worst-case). All estimates assume the player is domiciled in the state where their team plays home games.
| Sport | Season Games | Approx. Duty Days | Away Games in Tax States (FL team) | FL Team Annual Jock Tax on $10M | NY/CA Team Annual Jock Tax on $10M | Domicile Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB (Baseball) | 162 games | ~230–260 | ~55–65 away games in tax states (81 away total) | $800K–$1.2M/yr | $2.5M–$4M/yr (NY/CA team pays home tax too) | HIGHEST — most away game days in tax states of any sport |
| NBA (Basketball) | 82 games | ~200–230 | ~28–35 away games in tax states | $450K–$700K/yr | $1.5M–$2.5M/yr (NY/CA team) | HIGH — 30-city schedule; long road trips create multi-state exposure |
| NHL (Hockey) | 82 games | ~195–225 | ~25–32 away games in tax states (7 Canadian teams exempt) | $400K–$650K/yr | $1.3M–$2.2M/yr (NY/NJ team) | HIGH — similar to NBA; Canadian games don’t create U.S. tax but reduce total taxable road days |
| NFL (Football) | 17 games + preseason | ~150–190 | ~8–12 away games in tax states (9 road games, most in tax states) | $250K–$450K/yr | $900K–$1.6M/yr (NY/CA team) | MODERATE — fewer games = less per-game jock tax; but single Super Bowl exposure can exceed entire season (Darnold example) |
| MLS (Soccer) | 34 games + playoffs | ~150–190 | ~12–18 away games in tax states | $180K–$350K/yr (lower salary scale) | $500K–$900K/yr | MODERATE — growing salary scale makes this increasingly relevant for DP players |
| WNBA (Basketball) | 40 games | ~120–150 | ~15–20 away games in tax states | $20K–$60K/yr (salary scale lower) | $60K–$120K/yr | LOWER on dollar terms — but as WNBA salaries grow toward NBA levels, this becomes material |
| Estimates based on typical away-game schedules, 2026 state income tax rates, and duty-day allocation methodology. FL team = Miami Heat, Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, etc. NY/CA team = New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, etc. Home team taxes apply to the team’s home state income tax rate on home-game duty days. Super Bowl, All-Star Game, and playoff game locations can significantly alter any single season’s actual burden. Work with an athlete-focused CPA for precise calculations. | ||||||
02 — Why MLB Players Have the Highest Jock Tax Exposure
Major League Baseball’s 162-game regular season produces more away-game duty days than any other major American professional sport. A typical MLB schedule includes 81 home games and 81 away games across 29 opponent cities. For a player on a Florida team (Marlins, Rays):
• Home games: 81 duty days in Florida (0% state tax)
• Away games: spread across 29 cities, approximately 55-65 of which are in income-tax states
• Spring training: additional duty days in Arizona or Florida (both favorable or neutral)
The result: an MLB player on a Florida team is in income-tax states for roughly 200+ duty days per year. At $10M salary with a 200/260-day allocation, the jock tax on away-game income alone can exceed $1 million annually.
For an MLB player on a New York (Mets/Yankees) or California (Giants/Dodgers/Angels/Padres/A’s) team: they pay home-state income tax on home-game days AND jock tax on away-game days in other income-tax states. The combined burden for a $10M California-based MLB player can approach $3.5–4.5 million annually.
With only 17 regular-season games, NFL players spend fewer days traveling to income-tax states than any other major sport. But three factors make the NFL jock tax more complex than the game count suggests:
1. Super Bowl location: as demonstrated by Sam Darnold’s Super Bowl LX in California (estimated $198K additional CA tax on a $178K winner’s check), the location of the championship game creates a significant one-time jock tax liability for the winning team. FL-domiciled players on winning teams playing in CA face the full 13.3% rate on those duty days.
2. Duty day definition: many states count all mandatory team activities — preseason games, training camp in that state, OTAs, and media obligations — as duty days. For players on teams with preseason games in California, this can add 5-8 additional CA duty days before the regular season begins.
3. Endorsement income: NFL players typically generate significant endorsement income. A player domiciled in California or New York pays their full home-state rate on all endorsements, regardless of where the activity occurred.
Brown, Ryan. “Own Luxury Homes® Sport-by-Sport Jock Tax Exposure Index™.” Own Luxury Homes®. https://www.ownluxuryhomes.com/markets/national/research-indices/sport-by-sport-jock-tax-exposure-indexMedia: ownluxuryhomes.com/connect · 407-900-7030
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