Stan Collymore urges Premier League to learn from NFL after Everton, Nottingham Forest charges
Stan Collymore has called for every major division worldwide to introduce a new spending cap after Everton and Nottingham Forest were charged over financial breaches.
The Premier League announced this week that Everton and Forest have been referred to an independent commission for alleged breaches of Profit and Sustainability Rules in their accounts for 2022-23.
Everton have already been charged with breaching the same rule in a previous three-year accounting cycle, leading to a 10-point deduction which they are now appealing.
Discussing the latest breach, Collymore told Caught Offside [19 January]: “What I’d like to see going forward is the global governing bodies now get their heads around an NFL-style salary cap.
“That is the only way to be able to ensure that all clubs start a season with the same parameters. Clubs will be given a budget, let’s say £200m, you can’t go beyond that and it is audited by independent bodies.
“FIFA have a lot of political clout to get this over the line as several countries are bending over backwards to get World Cups.
“If they want to have a credible FIFA Club World Cup when the new format appears in 2025, all clubs across the globe should have the same amount to spend on players, as FFP in its current state is not fit for purpose at the top of the game.”
Something has to be done
Everton have been punished twice for effectively the same offence, and a third punishment may yet follow if certain reports are to be believed.
This is not to say that there should be no rules in place at all, but there has to be a way to make them less complicated.
Collymore, whether you like him or not, has a point when it comes to the salary cap. If a team has a set amount to spend, there is no grey area.
Or at least that is what you would imagine on the face of it. Teams will always find a way to circumnavigate the rules, of course.
For example, if a team is close to their £200m budget, they may ask to loan a player for a year before purchasing outright down the line.
All that said, £200m seems like a large enough sum so that the “big clubs” – in the view of Richard Masters – stay happy.
Either way, it is all too late right now for Everton as they await to hear back on this latest punishment.
In other Everton news, a former Toffees target is reportedly now up for sale for a fee of around £31million.
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