Premier League faces backlash after failing to agree financial deal with EFL

Premier League clubs have walked away from a deal to provide more money to the English Football League, risking a row with the government and putting the position of the Premier League chief executive, Richard Masters, under threat.

Over two years since top-flight clubs were first told by ministers to provide extra funding to help stabilise the football pyramid, clubs chose not to proceed to a vote on a proposed new deal at a meeting in central London on Monday, opting to pursue reform of their own financial rules instead.

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While a vote was passed on elements of possible new financial structures, with the current Profit and Sustainability rules (PSR) which have seen Everton sanctioned this season expected to be replaced, the possibility of a deal being struck has now receded substantially and the Premier League is unable to say when discussions might be resumed.

The government has repeatedly threatened that the proposed new regulator for English football would enforce a settlement if one was not agreed independently. This was a point repeated publicly by the culture secretary, Lucy Frazer, less than two weeks ago and in private message to Premier League clubs.

There is as yet no fixed date for the bill that would establish a regulator to be put before parliament, with time running out before the arrival of a general election. The possibility that the government is unable to deliver on its threat remains, but there is no doubt that the Premier League and Masters have spent significant energy since the turn of the year trying to get their clubs to agree to a financial package, and had hoped to put it to a vote at their latest meeting, only to be rebuffed.

The inability to strike a deal is a problem for the Premier League in general and for Masters personally. Formerly the director of sales and marketing at the Premier League, Masters stepped into the role of chief executive in 2018, initially as an interim but took the role full time after two outside candidates were appointed but then stepped back from the role. He has since steered the Premier League through the trials of Covid and delivered increased TV revenues, but has also seen its 20 shareholder clubs become increasingly fractured over the future direction of the competition.

A proposed ban on clubs loaning players from clubs with shared ownership was rejected, revealing the extent of the influence of multi-club groups within the Premier League, while proposed rules over ‘related party transactions’ – seen to restrict the abilities of state-owned clubs - have proven contentious. Meanwhile, Everton became the first club to be sanctioned with a points deduction for breaching PSR, a decision which provoked massive public backlash and embroiled Masters personally in controversy after he appeared to call the Premier League ever-present side a ‘small’ club during a meeting with MPs.

In a statement the Premier League said clubs had ‘re-confirmed’ their commitment to striking a deal. A statement read: “At a Premier League Shareholders’ meeting today, clubs agreed to prioritise the swift development and implementation of a new League-wide financial system. This will provide certainty for clubs in relation to their future financial plans and will ensure the Premier League is able to retain its existing world-leading investment to all levels of the game.

“Alongside this, Premier League clubs also re-confirmed their commitment to securing a sustainably-funded financial agreement with the EFL, subject to the new financial system being formally approved by clubs.”