(Our thanks to Aston Villa fan Warren Michael Holmes for this excellent article about how PSR is not fair and reasonable when it comes to the finances of Premier League clubs, with Villa and Newcastle united the most important victims.
Here at The Mag we saw Warren commenting on Villa Social Media and we asked if we could share what he had to say about the issues involved.
Our thanks to him for agree.
This specific article by Warren Michael Holmes was inspired by something the (sad!) Rory Smith wrote for The observer.
Smith is very supportive on a regular basis of the status quo, and gives his support to the financial gap that exists between the usual suspects and those who try to close the yawn gap. The observer journalist explains in this case; ‘PSR is not perfect, but the alternative would be devastating’
This is the excellent reaction of Aston Villa fan Warren Michael Holmes on Smith’s Lamme piece.)
The Rory Smith defense of PSR in the observer contains perfectly everything that is wrong with the current regulatory mindset
His argument – that ambitious clubs simply “should sell better” – reveals a fundamental misunderstanding about how these rules work in practice and who really benefits.
Rory rejects the concerns of Aston Villa and Newcastle United by pointing out our editions since promotion.
This is completely missing the point. The issue is not historical expenses – it is the regulatory ceiling that prevents persistent competition with the established elite.
Rory suggests that the problems of Newcastle and Villa arise from a bad sale. This ignores the brutal reality: when regulations force you to sell your best players to satisfy, you are not “acting well” – you dismantle what you have built.
Aston Villa qualified for the Champions League and then had to sell Luiz, Diaby and Duran.
Newcastle qualified for Europe and was then confronted with identical pressure. This is not a bad trade – it is systematic dismantling disguised as financial responsibility.
In the meantime, Chelsea spends £ 300+ million by ‘selling’ assets to itself. The regulations do not prevent expenses – they prefer that advanced enough to exploit meshes while they punish simple investments.
Rory’s resignation of the “red cartel” theory ignores reality. When Villa qualified for Europe, the SCR rules of the UEFA started immediately, so that we were limited to 70% of the income on team costs, while non-European clubs are not confronted with such restrictions.
The system literally punishes success.
UEFA’s own scheme with Villa proves the point: £ 20 million or more to potential fines, transfer restrictions that must be sold before they buy, and 3 years of financial monitoring. What for? Invest to compete.
The regulations are not income neutral. They are decorated on clubs with established commercial benefits.
The London location of Chelsea generates £ 546 million annually compared to the £ 310 million from Villa. That £ 236 million difference creates a huge PSR headroom before the sale of players is considered.
When rules link the expenditure to the income, they anchor existing hierarchies. Villa cannot pronounce Manchester City because we cannot surpass them and the rules ensure that we will never do that.
Rory states that regulations protect the competition, but they have reached the opposite. Look in the last decade of the Premier League’s top six. The same clubs, in marginal different orders, year after year.
The title Leicester City 2016 proved that the competition was possible. Current regulations ensure that it never happens again. That does not protect sport – it is storing sports cartels!
Rory’s F1 – comparison – F1 introduced cost caps to improve competition, but crucial, they also applied to all teams. Premier League PSR creates different rules for different clubs based on income and European qualification.
Imagine that F1 says that Mercedes could spend £ 200 million because of their commercial success, while Williams was limited to £ 50 million. That is exactly how football works now.
Nobody argues for unlimited expenses. But the current rules need fundamental reform:
On income -based limits that take investments into the owner into account
Equal treatment regardless of the historical commercial benefits
Regulations that encourage competition, not in the anchoring of monopolies
Transparent enforcement that does not prefer accounting creativity over sport investments
Aston Villa and Newcastle United do not demand “replacing the elite” – we demand the right to compete with it. The current system ensures that it remains impossible.
His article concludes that “Sport decides by checkbook is not at all sport.” He is absolutely right. But sport did not decide by spreadsheets and accounting meshes either – it is a rigged game that occurs as competition.
The Premier League failure to explain these regulations is no coincidence. When your rules prevent the competition they claim to protect, silence becomes the only defensible strategy.
(To follow the author on X/Twitter, go to @Warrenholmes))
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