Leicester at risk of another Premier League PSR charge over latest accounts | city ​​of leicester

Leicester face a nervous wait to find out if they will be charged by the first division with failing to comply with profitability and sustainability standards (PSR) for the second consecutive season. The club is one of several in the top category that had to present its financial accounts for the 2023-24 season before 5:00 p.m. on New Year's Eve, because they have recorded losses in the last two years, and on the 13th of January they will be informed if they have violated PSR.

Leicester escaped a first division points deduction earlier this season after they were accused of defaulting on £24.4m for the 2022-23 season. The club's legal team managed to persuade an independent commission that, having been relegated at the end of that season, Leicester were not in the Premier League when it submitted its accounts for that period on June 30, 2023.

The club posted pre-tax losses of £92.5m and £90m for the 2022 and 2023 financial years respectively, however they risk being accused of another breach. Given the points deductions Everton and Nottingham Forest received last season, any charge could be a blow to Leicester's survival hopes, with Ruud van Nistelrooy's side in second-to-last place at the halfway mark.

Premier League rules restrict clubs to losses of £105m over a three-year period if all those years were spent in the top flight. Because Leicester were in the Championship last season, their allowable losses for the current three-year cycle will be reduced by £22 million, due to the English Football League's stricter spending limits. The club's losses will have been reduced by last season's player sales, with Harvey Barnes' £38m move to Newcastle and Timothy Castagne's £15m move to Fulham to be included in its latest accounts, along with with the £10 million compensation received for the transfer of Enzo Maresca to Chelsea. . Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall's £30m sale to Chelsea will not be included because it did not go through until July 2024.

Leicester have expressed confidence they will avoid another charge, but Premier League sources believe the club may have a case to answer.

As previously reported by The Guardian Leicester could face EFL charges for overspending during the 2020-23 period at the end of this season if they are relegated.

Under regulations introduced 18 months ago, designed to ensure that any PSR breaches are resolved quickly, all Premier League clubs that have recorded aggregate losses over the previous two accounting periods must hand in their accounts for the previous season by 31 December. Premier League lawyers and accountants will spend the next fortnight assessing the figures to determine whether there has been any breach of the PSR, with any decision to lay charges set to be published by January 13.

With Leicester found to have defaulted on £24.4m for the 2022-23 season, they are the club most vulnerable to charges. Chelsea, Everton and Forest sold players last summer, so they are confident of meeting the PSR.