Premier League club executives are warning of another low-spending transfer window this summer because they are “terrified” of breaching financial rules and being hit with a points deduction.
The appeal board that reduced Everton’s punishment from ten points to six on Monday made it clear that any contravention of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) should result in points being docked.
Everton are waiting to discover their fate over a separate charge this season, as are Nottingham Forest, while several clubs, including Chelsea, Everton and Forest — should the latter two survive in the Premier League — may need to take remedial action between now and the end of June to avoid a new charge for breaching rules this season. That may include selling players and securing new commercial deals, but could restrict their ability to bring new players in.
One club chief told The Times: “Anyone who is close to the limit is terrified about taking any risks now. Clubs are definitely erring on the side of caution.
“We saw in January that no one spent anything really, and I’m sure the whole transfer market will quieten in the summer too — maybe that’s a good thing.”
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Premier League clubs spent only £96.2 million on signings during the January window, compared to £780 million the previous year.
Another club source said: “It’s a balancing act now. We need to stay within the rules but we need to remain competitive both domestically and in Europe.”
Under the top flight’s PSR, clubs are limited to losing a maximum of £105 million over a rolling three-year period, though spending on areas such as youth football, stadiums and infrastructure can be deducted. The board that reduced Everton’s punishment on Monday stated: “There is no reason to consider that [a punishment] less than a points deduction is appropriate for a breach of the PSR, as being necessary to fulfil the rules’ aims.”
Some football finance experts believe Chelsea are sailing close to the wind and will need to earn significant sums from player sales and commercial deals before the end of June. The club say they are not at risk of a charge.
Chelsea have bigger concerns over the Premier League investigation into the secret payments during Roman Abramovich’s ownership, which has been running for 21 months now and should be close to completion, with charges expected. Chelsea’s owners, the Clearlake Capital consortium led by Todd Boehly, reported the payments to the Premier League, many of which were related to transfers, after discovering them during the takeover process in 2022.
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Kieran Maguire, a football finance author, said: “Chelsea are a concern in relation to breaches of FFP [Financial Fair Play] rules. From a Premier League perspective, player sales, especially from the academy, have been beneficial to the club and those could tip the balance in their favour.
“They also did make €97 million [£83 million] in prize money from getting to the Champions League quarter-final last year and where they have bought players they have done so on eight-year contracts which were within the amortisation rules at the time.”
Amortisation allows clubs to spread the cost of a transfer fee over the length of a player’s contract. Rules for new transfers that came into force in December limit that length to five years.
Stefan Borson, a lawyer who previously worked with Manchester City as a financial adviser and who has an interest in football finance, believes Chelsea will be charged with a breach of PSR next year and that Everton are also at risk
Arsenal are not thought to be in danger of breaching PSR despite making a £52 million loss last season and £45 million the season before. Arsenal’s revenue rose by £95 million to £467 million but their wage bill remains way below the four biggest spenders in the top flight. Arsenal’s wages for the 2022-23 season were £234.7 million compared to Manchester City’s £422.9 million, with Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool also paying considerably more.
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Part of Arsenal’s deficit for last season can be attributed to writing off losses on the winger Nicolas Pépé, who cost £72 million from Lille in 2019.
The accounts show that “impairment write-downs on certain player registrations” amounted to £18.1 million. Pépé had his contract terminated in September last year before he moved to Trabzonspor in Turkey.
