Scrap VAT on five-a-side football: extra charges may force companies to end free sessions for schoolchildren But a spokesman for PlayFootball, which runs leagues at 18 pitches, said: "Someone has to absorb the cost somewhere. It may be that in the future instead of kids getting the service for free it might be that unfortunately the schools will have to start paying for it. It is difficult for businesses which are running on low margins to absorb that cost. It might have to be cancelled and that wouldn't be fair on local state school kids. But HMRC argues that leagues do not simply provide land, which is exempt from tax, also organising fixtures and changing facilities, services it says should be liable for 20 per cent tax. Senior sports figures, including Team GB deputy chef de mission Sir Clive Woodward and Newcastle manager Alan Pardew, have supported our campaign. Sports minister Hugh Robertson has also written to Treasury minister David Gauke to express his concerns about the "detrimental effects" VAT would have on the sport in a year when the Government is trying to focus on an "Olympic legacy." Sign our online petition to get VAT on five-a-side scrapped