The Premier League clubs have voted in favour of squad cost ratio (SCR) replacing profit and sustainability rules (PSR) as the new system of financial fair play and the latest financial results reveal the three clubs which would be facing sanctions had it already been in place.
The new rules will limit the amount of revenue a club can spend on player and manager wages, transfers and agents’ fees to 85%. Bournemouth, Brentford, Brighton, Crystal Palace, Fulham and Leeds voted against the change, but the minimum of 14 clubs was reached.
Both Chelsea and Aston Villa were handed heavy fines by UEFA for the 2024/2025 campaign for breaching their SCR limit, which was at that stage 80% and is now set at just 70%. That far stricter level means a club competing in Europe next season could be sanctioned by UEFA but be compliant in the Premier League.
Any team above the 85% mark in the Premier League – the Green Threshold –will face a fine, though they’ve provided significant wiggle room to avoid sporting sanctions, with a multi-year rolling allowance of 30% permitting clubs to spend beyond the limit.
The Red Threshold is 85% plus the allowance; any club beyond that threshold will be given a six-point deduction plus another point for every £6.5m over that mark.
It means that any Premier League club can have a squad cost at 115% of their revenue and avoid a points deduction, though those percentages will change for 2027/2028 and the seasons after that if some of the allowance has already been used.
If, for example, a club spends 95% on their squad next season, they’ve used 10% of their allowance and can therefore spend 105% on their squad the season after, using the remaining 20% of their allowance, without sporting sanction. Got it? Great.
Anyway, here are the revenues and squad costs of the 18 current Premier League teams who were also competing in the 2023/2024 season, the latest financial results available from Deloitte, ranked from lowest to highest squad cost/revenue ratio, which shows the three clubs that were above the new Green Threshold.
1) Tottenham
Revenue: £518m
Squad costs: £222m
Ratio: 43%
2) Arsenal
Revenue: £613m
Squad costs: £328m
Ratio: 53%
3) Manchester United
Revenue: £662m
Squad costs: £365m
Ratio: 55%
4) Manchester City
Revenue: £719m
Squad costs: £413m
Ratio: 57%
5) West Ham
Revenue: £271m
Squad costs: £161m
Ratio: 59%
6) Liverpool
Revenue: £614m
Squad costs: £386m
Ratio: 63%
7) Brighton
Revenue: £223m
Squad costs: £146m
Ratio: 66%
8) Brentford
Revenue: £169m
Squad costs: £114m
Ratio: 68%
9) Newcastle United
Revenue: £320m
Squad costs: £219m
Ratio: 68%
10) Burnley
Revenue: £134m
Squad costs: £93m
Ratio: 70%
11) Crystal Palace
Revenue: £189m
Squad costs: £134m
Ratio: 71%
12) Chelsea
Revenue: £468m
Squad costs: £338m
Ratio: 72%
13) Wolves
Revenue: £178m
Squad costs: £142m
Ratio: 80%
14) Everton
Revenue: £187m
Squad costs: £157m
Ratio: 84%
15) Bournemouth
Revenue: £161m
Squad costs: £136m
Ratio: 84%
16) Fulham
Revenue: £181m
Squad costs: £155m
Ratio: 86%
17) Aston Villa
Revenue: £272m
Squad costs: £252m
Ratio: 93%
18) Nottingham Forest
Revenue: £174m
Squad costs: £167m
Ratio: 96%