Leicester City could be hit with a minimum 12-point penalty as they kick off next season in the Championship, it has been claimed.
The Foxes have found themselves in a financial mess after striving to maintain their position in the Premier League. A surprising relegation in 2023 dealt a significant blow to their income - and notably reduced the amount they are permitted to lose over a three-year rolling cycle.
They won promotion in 2023/24 but are heading straight back down again - and have been referred by the Premier League to an independent commission for an alleged breach of profit and sustainability rules for that season, 23/24.
Leicester had previously been referred to the commission for the three years leading up to 2023 - when they allegedly exceeded PSR limits by £19.5 million - but avoided punishment due to a loophole, successfully arguing they were no longer a Premier League club and not yet a Championship club when they filed their 2022/23 accounts. That loophole has since been closed.
The club has reported total losses of £201.6m in their most recent three-year cycle, but is only permitted to lose up to £84.5m because one year of that was spent in the Championship. Premier League clubs are allowed to lose up to £35m a year and Championship clubs can lose up to £13m, plus an extra £1.5m for the 2023/24 season due to the rising cost of living.
According to the latest charges, an independent commission is investigating an alleged breach of the Premier League financial loss threshold, the club's supposed failure to submit accounts by December 31, 2024, and claims it did not provide full, complete and prompt assistance over the issue.
If proved, the authorities could impose severe penalties. The Athletic report: "Because both the EFL and Premier League have prosecuted numerous PSR cases now, we also have a good sense of how many points a tribunal is likely to deduct for a significant breach, particularly if it is considered to be 'aggravated' as opposed to 'mitigated'.
"Given Leicester's long fight to avoid being sanctioned by either body and their most recent failure to submit accounts to the Premier League, they are almost certainly going to be charged with an aggravated breach. This would suggest a starting position of them getting docked 12 points, though with a good chance that the Premier League will ask for even more."
Given that Leicester are amongst the early favourites to win promotion back to the top-flight at the first attempt, such action would severely hit their chances.
Sheffield United began this past season with a two-point deduction for to failing to make payments due to other clubs in 2022/23 and 2023/24, but managed to bounce back to finish third and reach the play-off final. Whether Leicester could achieve anything like the same level of success given a much tougher penalty is unlikely.
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