The 100 super-rich celebrities involved in a £700million tax relief scheme have been named today.

David and Victoria Beckham, Robbie Williams, Gary Lineker, Ant and Dec and Geri Halliwell were among a group of stars who invested in partnerships run by controversial finance firm Ingenious, and each paid a minimum £100,000 to support a movie venture that promised to combine box office hits with tempting tax breaks.

The Ingenious Film Partners 2 LLP scheme qualified for tax breaks under rules designed to stimulate the British film industry, with hit movies such as Life of Pi, Avatar and Girl With a Pearl Earring qualifying for tax relief.

But HMRC argued such schemes were not legitimate investment opportunities but actually a means of avoiding tax, and a tax tribunal has now ruled the incentives were 'not allowable deductions', upholding a previous decision in 2016.

David and Victoria Beckham, left, and Gary Lineker, right, are among a group of stars who face a collective £700million tax bill over a controversial film investment scheme

Ant & Dec, pictured, were also among the famous faces to invest in Ingenious, which lost a tribunal battle with HMRC, who said its tax breaks amounted to avoidance

It means 1,400 people who invested – including Wayne Rooney, Bob Geldof, Davina McCall and Jeremy Paxman – face paying back millions of pounds

Davina McCall poses for a photo at the BGC Annual Global Charity Day at Canary Wharf on September 12, 2016

It means 1,400 people who invested – including Wayne Rooney, Bob Geldof, Davina McCall and Jeremy Paxman – face paying back millions of pounds.

Others on the list include Sir Alex Ferguson, singer Craig David, ex-England manager Stev­e McClaren and Sacha Baron Cohen.

Many of those involved have been knighted or received honours from the Queen. Others are Lords.

Last night a tax source told The Sun: 'Those investors who chanced their arm by taking this to court may end up paying significantly more in tax as a result of this decision.'

Around £420m of tax was to have been avoided, but the total owed near £700m.

Many of Ingenious's investors subsequently claimed they were wrongly advised to enter the schemes without being made aware of the risks involved.

A spokesman for HMRC said: 'We are pleased that the Tribunal has agreed with us that the vast majority of what was claimed in tax relief by Ingenious investors was simply not due.

THE SPORTSMEN David Beckham (ex-Man Utd) Dennis Wise (ex-Chelsea) Dean Windass (ex-Hull) Steven Gerrard (ex-Liverpool) Anton Ferdinand (ex-QPR) Marcus Bent (ex-Everton) Jamie Carragher (ex-Liverpool) Nicky Barmby (ex-Spurs) Dominic Matteo (ex-Liverpool) Wes Brown (ex-Man Utd) Nicky Butt (ex-Man Utd) Michael Hughes (ex-C Palace) Steven Caldwell (ex-Burnley) Joey Barton (ex-Man City) Martin Keown (ex-Arsenal) Jonathan Woodgate (ex-Leeds) Colin Hendry (ex-Rangers) Emile Heskey (ex-Liverpool) Clinton Morrison (ex-Palace) Danny Murphy (ex-Liverpool) Scott Parker (ex-Charlton) John O’Shea (ex-Man Utd) Hayden Mullins (ex-Palace) John Arne Riise (ex-Liverpool) Trevor Sinclair (ex-West Ham) Mamady Sidibe (ex-Stoke) Gary Speed (ex-Leeds) Robbie Keane (ex-Spurs) Matthew Elliott (ex-Leicester) Dean Richards (ex-Wolves) Simon Charlton (ex-Bolton) Steve McClaren (Ex-England) Sir Alex Ferguson (Ex-Man Utd) Carlo Cudicini (Ex-Chelsea assistant) Martin O’Neill (Rep of Ireland) David O’Leary (Ex-Leeds) Gary McAllister (Ex-Leeds) Michael Vaughan (cricketer) Marcus Tresco-thick (cricketer) Matthew Hoggard (cricketer) Nasser Hussain (cricketer) Alec Stewart (cricketer) David Gower (cricketer) Craig White (cricket) Duncan Fletcher (former England cricket coach) Neil Lennon (ex-Celtic) Joleon Lescott (ex-Man City) Gary Lineker (ex-Leicester) Paul Konchesky (ex-Leicester) Francis Jeffers (ex-Everton) Eoin Jess (ex-Aberdeen) Alain Goma (ex-Fulham) Ryan Giggs (ex-Man Utd) Andy Griffin (ex-Newcastle) Tim Cahill (ex-Everton) Jussi Jaskelainen (ex-Bolton) Michael Bridges (ex-Leeds) Matthew Etherington (ex-W Ham) Paul McVeigh (ex-Norwich) Gudni Bergsson (ex-Bolton) Advertisement

Ryan Giggs and his former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson were caught up in the tax relief scheme

Former Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard, who retired from football, was named in the 100

Former Rangers midfielder Joey Barton was suspended from all football activity for 18 months after admitting a misconduct charge relating to betting

Ex-Celtic and Leicester City midfielder Neil Lennon, who is currently manager of Hibernian, was named as one of the 100

'Anyone who anticipates problems paying their tax bill should contact HMRC, who may be able to offer extra time to pay based on individual circumstances.

'HMRC has an outstanding record for supporting those facing genuine difficulty.'

A spokesman for Ingenious confirmed it would be appealing the ruling.

THE CELEBS AND POLITICIANS Victoria Beckham Geri Halliwell Melanie Chisholm Simon Fuller Peter Gabriel Phillip Schofield Robbie Williams George Michael Craig David Gareth Gates Ant and Dec Anne Robinson Davina McCall Neil Morrissey David Suchet Sacha Baron Cohen David Heyman Jeremy Paxman Kate Adie Peter Fincham (ex-ITV boss) Lord Grade of Yarmouth (ex-BBC chairman) Lord Clive Hollick (Labour donor) Lord Davis of Abersoch Andrew Mitchell MP (Tory) Rt Hon Lord Sainsbury (Tory) Lord William Waldegrave (Tory) Advertisement

Around £420m of tax was to have been avoided, but the total owed near £700m. Pictured is former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell

The Ingenious Film Partners 2 LLP scheme qualified for tax breaks under rules designed to stimulate the British film industry. Pictured is Robbie Williams (left) and Phillip Schofield (right)

TV presenter Jeremy Paxman. A spokesman for Ingenious confirmed it would be appealing the ruling

The spokesman said: 'We strongly disagree with the Tribunal's clarification of a technical matter from its summer 2016 ruling.

'It is wholly unsatisfactory that the Tribunal reached this decision with 'misgivings and reluctance'.

'We will be appealing the entire decision of the Tribunal.'

An earlier version of this article suggested that the journalist Alistair Stewart was connected with the Ingenious tax avoidance scheme. We are happy to clarify that he was not and apologise for the error.