UEFA’s financial fair play, the deeply flawed spending measure with more holes than a block of Swiss cheese, will be replaced by a new system that is unlikely to halt the dominance of the super clubs. As first reported by the New York Times, the new “financial sustainability regulations” will see a cap placed on clubs spending 70% of income on wages and the amortisation of transfer fees after hopes of introducing a salary cap similar to US sports was met by insurmountable European Union legal hurdles.
The new rules will be ratified on April 7 when the governing body’s executive board vote and new punishments, potentially including points deductions, will form part of the regulations. They will be implemented gradually with a 90% cap expected initially before progressing down to 70%.
Yet the new system has already come in for criticism because it is likely to favour big English clubs compared to their continental rivals. Separate rules in Spain already limit the salary limits of La Liga clubs, while Italian clubs including Juventus have come under scrutiny for their overspending in recent seasons and a subsequent need to trim budgets.
