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Premier League clubs agree new cost controls

By Simon AustinBBC Sport

Last updated on .From the section Footballcomments370

Vincent Kompany

The 20 Premier League clubs have agreed, in principle, to introduce radical new cost controls.

There are two main proposals on the table - a break-even rule and a cap on the amount clubs can increase their wage bills by each season.

Club chief executives have now been asked to produce detailed plans for exactly how these proposals will work.

These rules would mark a major change for the clubs, which made cumulative losses of £361m in 2010-11.

Champions Manchester City, for example, made a £97.9m loss in their latest set of results, which were revealed last Friday.

City and Fulham are the only clubs opposed to any spending controls, BBC Sport understands. However, any new Premier League rule requires the approval of only 14 of the 20 clubs in order to be introduced.

With the Premier League's new three-year television deals expected to break through the £5bn barrier from 2013, momentum is growing to find a way of preventing the majority of that cash going straight to players and agents.

There have now been six meetings of top-flight chairmen where cost controls have been discussed without any concrete decisions being made.

The next meeting will be on 6 February.

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370 comments

  • Comment posted by User0265099880, at 16:37 18 Dec 2012

    Closing the Stable Door after the Horse has bolted....

    Watch how the biggest clubs employ the most creative Accountants.

    The Premiership is just about money now and the only interest is wondering who will go down.

  • Comment posted by User0420965903, at 16:23 18 Dec 2012

    Also means that ticket prices and merchandice will almost certainly go up in a bid to get more money into the club - bad news for punters I'm afraid

  • Comment posted by User0395600339, at 17:50 18 Dec 2012

    its common sense to curb spending. It is done in Germany and the results have been excellent. Teams full of academy players playing exciting, attacking football, cheap tickets and sold out stadiums. Look what Dortmund did to City with a team full of young players!

  • Comment posted by grice, at 16:23 18 Dec 2012

    Now how about a reduction in ticket prices as well? If you look around a premier league crowd these days the majority of fans are middle aged men. Something drastic needs to be done to attract younger fans, otherwise many attendances are going to shrink dramatically over the next half century.

  • Comment posted by User0804688699, at 16:29 18 Dec 2012

    It's about time football clubs started to act responsibly and run themselves like businesses. Spending 90% of your annual turnover on wages in any other business would be financial suicide.

  • Comment posted by User0754711334, at 18:00 18 Dec 2012

    All a wealthy Sheik has to do is buy the rights to play Man city TV (for example) in his country for £100m pa and all of a sudden MC are in profit. I am sure there are many other ways of raising money ie overpriced tours etc.
    Anything linked to breaking even will be easy to circumvent if you want to.

  • Comment posted by User0705252212, at 16:26 18 Dec 2012

    Well I would have to agree with the majority who have seen the common-sense in this decision. There can only be positives that can come of it for the most. Debt free success has to be better than winning at all cost, right!?

  • Comment posted by User0897464742, at 16:57 18 Dec 2012

    @InformationAddict

    Great thought, unfortunately my local non-league club went bust after trying to go pro!!

  • Comment posted by sgsrth, at 16:12 18 Dec 2012

    In principle I'm in favour, certainly something had to be done soon. I doubt the rules imposed will have the desired effect or be properly enforced. Still, fingers crossed

  • Comment posted by Somerset Boy UK_Laye, at 18:07 18 Dec 2012

    So many people talk about being exploited week in week out by their football club yet even in their realisation they continue to do so. Utter madness

  • Comment posted by Rinky Dinky Do, at 16:21 18 Dec 2012

    @4 - Are you serious about even more money going into players pockets?

    Do you not think that 150K - 200K a week is enough money?

    Perhaps the money could be used to give stadiums better facilities or pumped back into youth development, or even making it cheaper for fans to watch matches ect ect

  • Comment posted by SJC961, at 20:01 18 Dec 2012

    A cap on the wage bill increase but not on the wage bills themselves?

    So they don't mind that it's extortionate at the moment, only that it only progresses to more and more extortionate levels at an acceptable rate.

  • Comment posted by User0656189394, at 17:59 18 Dec 2012

    This is probably stating the bleeding obvious but anyone over the age of 30 will tell you that money has had a detrimental effect on our beloved game.How can anyone justify losing 2 million pounds every week with a full house?mental!!

  • Comment posted by JHeeley, at 19:48 18 Dec 2012

    @156 City only started selling out when a billionaire come in and took over? Loyal fans...

  • Comment posted by RJ, at 18:12 18 Dec 2012

    I can see some of the richer clubs selling 1 season ticket for an exorbitant amount to increase their match day revenue.

  • Comment posted by D1679233263316, at 11:22 19 Dec 2012

    The only reason we have a two tier prem.is because of the huge debts that the big four/five have.
    Curb this drasticly and we would soon see more competition and better games every week.
    If the likes of the Manchester teams and others don't like,well tough!!

  • Comment posted by User0529092171, at 19:03 18 Dec 2012

    What do expect from Arsenal supporters, VP, Walcott, and many others they are all lured away with massive wage hikes and chances of silverware. The only trouble is it's all debt ridden selling your soul for a trophy. Without sugar daddies clubs such as Chelsea and Man City would have to play on a financial playing field. They didn't win anything just bought it, it' not your club its the owners toy

  • Comment posted by User0897464742, at 17:26 18 Dec 2012

    @ted

    I'm puzzled as to why you think this is City's fault?

    Since football has been professional, the clubs with the most money are the most succesful. This is the same in every professional league, regardless of where the money came from. Football didn't care before and it doesn't now.

  • Comment posted by User0106633664, at 19:48 18 Dec 2012

    Moving away from the boring top club handbags, does this not have serious consequences for teams trying to enter the elite? This appears to want to close the Man City/Chelsea/QPR route where you simply acquire anything you can get your hands on but there is also this wage increase percentage cap. Does this not mean that any team that is promoted is at a severe disadvantage? Rich get richer...

  • Comment posted by Richard, at 17:57 18 Dec 2012

    @91 You need to go back to school.
    2011/12 accounts - Commercial revenue (excludes match day revenue) = £231.1m - Wages £201m
    You really are going to get a shock in a few years time aren't you?

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