Premier League Clubs Shake Up Financial Fair Play with Radical New Squad Cost Rules

Published 3 weeks ago3 minute read
Uche Emeka
Uche Emeka
Premier League Clubs Shake Up Financial Fair Play with Radical New Squad Cost Rules

Premier League clubs have voted to implement significant changes to the division's financial regulations, effective from the start of the next season. These overhauls include the scrapping of the existing Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and the introduction of new Squad-Cost Rules (SCR) and Sustainability and Systematic Resilience (SSR) proposals. However, controversial plans for 'top-to-bottom anchoring' were ultimately rejected.

The new Squad-Cost Rules (SCR) will limit clubs to spending no more than 85% of their total football revenue, which includes net profit or loss from transfers. For clubs participating in UEFA competitions, a stricter limit of 70% of revenue on football costs will apply, aligning the Premier League more closely with UEFA's existing financial dictates. Squad costs under SCR will encompass player and manager wages, transfer fees, and agents' fees. The new system also includes a multi-year allowance of an extra 30%, though exceeding this will incur a levy, with clubs eventually needing to comply with the 85% threshold or face sporting sanctions. The Premier League stated that SCR aims to foster opportunities for all clubs, promoting greater success and bringing the league's financial framework nearer to UEFA's model. Key features of this system include transparent in-season monitoring and sanctions, protection against sporting underperformance, flexibility to spend ahead of revenues, enhanced ability to invest off the pitch, and a reduction in complexity by focusing specifically on football-related expenditures.

The previous Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) had imposed a maximum loss of £105 million ($137.2m) over a rolling three-year period. The shift to SCR, which focuses on a ratio of spending to revenue, offers a different approach to financial management within the league.

Alongside SCR, new Sustainability and Systematic Resilience (SSR) proposals were unanimously approved by the clubs. These proposals are designed to assess a club's financial health across short, medium, and long-term horizons, utilizing three specific tests: the Working Capital Test, the Liquidity Test, and the Positive Equity Test.

Conversely, the proposal for 'top-to-bottom anchoring' (TBA) failed to gain the necessary support and was rejected. This controversial proposal would have limited any club's spending to no more than five times the amount earned by the league's bottom club in the previous season from centralized payments, such as prize money, television fees, and collective commercial income. While supporters believed anchoring would enhance competitive balance, the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) raised concerns that such a cap could negatively impact players' wages. Additionally, fears were voiced that top English clubs might struggle to compete for elite players in the global transfer market if a hard spending cap were introduced. Three major sports agencies, CAA Stellar, CAA Base, and Wasserman, had even threatened potential legal action, suggesting TBA could contravene section two of the UK's Competition Act. The decision to link spending limits to revenue, as with SCR, rather than a fixed number based on centralized contracts, provides clubs with greater financial flexibility.

The votes, which took place in London on Friday, conclude two years of consultations. This period included trialling both SCR and TBA through shadow monitoring over the last two seasons, allowing clubs to understand potential compliance requirements. SCR passed with 14 votes in favour and six against, meeting the minimum requirement for a rule change, while SSR received unanimous backing. The anchoring proposal, however, was rejected with 12 votes against, seven in favour, and one abstention.

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