Four-time Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers file for bankruptcy due to $15.5 million in unpaid taxes

Written by Sean LabarMay 2, 2024, 4 minutes, no comments Go through

After concluding the 2024 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers brass is focused on making it to the Super Bowl and maybe winning it to cap off the 2025 season.

One of their former players, who played for the 49ers for six of his 16-year NFL career, is concentrating on something very different.
For those who watched the NFL in the 1990s, Bill Romanowski should be well-known. However, he has put himself in a difficult situation with his tax payments.

On Monday, the 1988 third-round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers and his spouse declared bankruptcy.

Less than twenty-four hours before a planned hearing in the civil action that Department of Justice lawyers filed against the couple last summer, the Romanowskis filed for bankruptcy. This was a critical moment for them. The Romanowskis allegedly utilized a nutrition company they formed to evade paying taxes, and as a result, they now owe over $15.5 million in past taxes, according to U.S. lawyers.

The Romanowskis will automatically be granted a brief reprieve under federal law upon filing for bankruptcy, which will also automatically halt the Department of Justice’s attempts to collect the purported debt.

It’s claimed that the former star player for the San Francisco 49ers and his spouse, who won two Super Bowls with the team before winning two more with the Denver Broncos, utilized funds from their business accounts to pay for a range of tax-evaded personal goods and services.

Citing court papers, the story said that the pair paid for “over 170 visits to nail salons, hair salons, and day spas” in addition to rent, groceries, veterinary bills, and other expenses using funds from their Nutrition53 accounts.

In August, Nutrition53 filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11.

The DOJ’s pursuit of the Romanowskis’ purported debt is immediately put on hold as a result of the bankruptcy filing.

After Bill Romanowski left the San Francisco 49ers, his 16-year NFL career was marred by controversy.

From 1988 until 2003, Romanowski participated in 243 straight NFL games, setting a record that Chris Gardocki broke in 2006. Romanowski’s career total was 265 (256 regular season games plus 9 postseason games). In addition to participating in five Super Bowls (Super Bowl XXIII, Super Bowl XXIV, Super Bowl XXXII, Super Bowl XXXIII, and Super Bowl XXXVII), he won four Super Bowl Championships. The lattermost was his only setback.

Following an outstanding rookie campaign with the San Francisco 49ers, he was selected to the PFWA All-Rookie team.

Romanowski recorded 1,105 tackles, 39.5 sacks, 18 forced fumbles, and 18 interceptions in his 16-year career. He also returned those interceptions for 98 yards and one touchdown. Romanowski was selected to the Pro Bowl twice while playing with the Denver Broncos, in 1996 and 1998.

Romanowski’s unsavory play and altercations during his NFL career will live on in legend.

 

Romanowski got into a lot of fights with opponents as well as teammates. He was fined $4,500 after being sent off from an Eagles game in 1995 for kicking Arizona Cardinals fullback Larry Centers in the head.

The former bruiser for the San Francisco 49ers was ranked fifth in professional sports history by ESPN.

He was involved in two further incidents while playing for the Broncos in 1997. In the first, he was fined $20,000 for hitting quarterback Kerry Collins of the Carolina Panthers helmet-to-helmet during a preseason game, breaking Collins’ jaw.

During a scrimmage in 2003, Romanowski assaulted tight end Marcus Williams, injuring him. Williams’ eye socket was crushed by Romanowski’s punch, forcing him to retire.

In 1997, he participated in two more events while he was a player for the Broncos. In the first, he broke quarterback Kerry Collins’ jaw in a preseason game by hitting Collins helmet-to-helmet, for which he was fined $20,000.

Marcus Williams, a tight end, suffered injuries after Romanowski attacked him during a scrimmage in 2003. Romanowski’s punch broke Williams’ eye socket, causing him to retire.

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