Premier League introduce radical new financial rules for next season | OneFootball

Premier League clubs have voted for the biggest overhaul of financial rules in recent years, with new measures coming into force from 2026/27.

The league has announced that clubs have voted to replace the current Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) with the Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) and Sustainability and Systematic Resilience (SSR) from next season.

Shareholders first voted on wage capping in the form of top-to-bottom anchoring (TBA), but just seven clubs voted in favour for the measure which would have limited clubs’ spending on wages, transfer fees (including agent fees) to five times the amount of prize money and broadcast revenue awarded to the team that finished bottom. The most controversial of the measures up for vote, it was viewed by players effectively as a salary cap, and vocal opponents to the idea included both of the top flight’s Manchester teams.

The SCR, voted through by the necessary 14 clubs, means that from next season, clubs’ “on-pitch spending” with be limited to “85 per cent of their football revenue and net profit/loss on player sales”. The measure will replace PSR, which limits club losses to a maximum of £105million ($137m) over three years. 

Under SCR, teams will also have a “multi-year allowance of 30 per cent”, which they can use to spend in excess of the 85 per cent. Use of this allowance will incur a levy, and once it’s been exhausted, clubs must stick to their allotted 85 per cent or face a sporting sanction.

The new rules will bring the League in line with UEFA’s existing SCR rules, which currently sit at a threshold 70 per cent. Chelsea and Aston Villa both received fines in 2024 from UEFA following breaches of the SCR rules.

According to a statement from the Premier League, the new rules “are intended to promote opportunity for all clubs to aspire to greater success” and also include “transparent in-season monitoring and sanctions, protection against sporting underperformance, an ability to spend ahead of revenues, strengthened ability to invest off the pitch, and a reduction in complexity by focusing on football costs.”

SSR, the second change voted through, is designed to “assess a club’s short, medium and long-term financial health,” according to the league’s statement. Three tests – Working Capital Test, Liquidity Test and Positive Equity Test – will look at clubs’ ability to handle immediate outgoings, while also considering their long-term financial health and balance sheet.