Premier League clubs have voted overwhelmingly against the introduction of controversial anchoring plans but agreed a squad cost ratio (SCR) system, as the top flight moved to a new era of financial regulation.
Top-to-bottom anchoring (TBA) would have tied the spending of the league’s clubs to a multiple of the revenue earned by the division’s bottom-placed side the previous season in central payments passed on by the league. The plan has long been opposed by the top flight’s two Manchester clubs and a vote in London on Friday brought 12 votes against the measure and seven for, with Burnley abstaining.
The vote on SCRs proved less divisive, with the necessary majority of 14 clubs voting in favour and six against. The six clubs who voted against are understood to be Bournemouth, Brighton, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Fulham and Leeds.
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TBA had come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks, with the Professional Footballers’ Association and player agencies threatening the possibility of legal action should the rules be introduced. This may have been a factor in the decisive vote against the measures, though clubs were said to have growing concerns of their own about an absolute limit being imposed on spending.
The introduction of SCR means the end of profitability and sustainability rules (and that from next season clubs will be limited to spending no more than 85% of their football revenue and net profit/loss on player sales on on-pitch spending, which includes player transfer fees and wages. If clubs exceed the 85% level, known as the “green threshold”, they will be liable to a fine. Exceeding a “red threshold” of 115% of spending will result in a sporting sanction, most likely the deduction of points.
This system will exist alongside a similar set of constraints imposed by Uefa on clubs in European competition, rules which this season apply to nine of the league’s 20 clubs.
A third measure, referred to as sustainability and systematic resilience (SSR), was approved unanimously. It will be comprised of three tests designed to assess a club’s sustainability over the short, medium and long term. Teams will be expected to show they have enough cash to cover the current season’s costs and “unforeseen fluctuations”, while a liquidity test will also ensure they can handle “a variety of financial shocks inherent to the industry”, one of which is relegation. A third test looks at a club’s level of debt with an eye to the long term and potential systemic shifts in the industry, such as a fall in media rights revenues.
The Premier League said it had developed the new financial system through “extensive consultation with clubs and a wide range of stakeholders” and that it was devised to work “effectively in parallel with Uefa’s rules and is consistent with the objectives of the Independent Football Regulator”.
The Premier League also announced it would push back the start of next season by one week to give players more time to recuperate after the World Cup. The opening match round will begin on the weekend of Saturday 22 August 2026, 33 days after the World Cup final, and the final round will be on Sunday 30 May 2027. There will be a return to a more traditional Boxing Day fixture list, after only one game was scheduled for this year.