Lawyers for Leicester City football club are today celebrating securing the reversal of a Premier League sanction on rules governing overspending.

Sports firm Centrefield LLP and counsel Nick De Marco KC, Davd Lowe and Marlena Valles secured victory on appeal after the East Midlands club had been found in breach of the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR) for the 2022/23 season.

The club’s appeal was upheld by a three-man board including two former Court of Appeal judges, Sir Stanley Burnton and Sir Maurice Kay.

The board found that the PSR rule did not apply to the club at the relevant time because it had ceased to be a member of the Premier League before the end of its 2023 accounting period (Leicester was relegated in May that year). The club therefore did not breach the relevant rule.

Writing on LinkedIn after the appeal decision, De Marco said: ‘I must emphasise that, first, cases are generally won or lost based on the quality of argument and evidence, not the identity of the advocate. None of us are miracle workers.

‘Second, LCFC had a great team that I was just one part of: my juniors David Lowe & Marlena Valles, the great team at Centrefield (especially Stuart, Philip and Alice) and the brilliant & lovely in house team at LCFC itself. ‘

The board’s decision means that Leicester, who were promoted back to the Premier League this year, avoid any immediate points deductions and have a better chance of fighting relegation.

The club welcomed the ruling and said it supported its consistently stated position that any action against the club should be pursued in accordance with the applicable rules.

It added: ‘In its decision, the appeal board identifies flaws in the drafting of the Premier League’s rules. In challenging the Premier League’s attempts to charge Leicester City, the club has simply sought to ensure (in the interests of providing consistency and certainty for all clubs) that the rules are applied based on how they are actually written.’

The Premier League said it was ‘surprised and disappointed’ with the outcome and suggested that clubs which overspend and exceed the PSR threshold could avoid accountability in these specific circumstances.

In a statement, the league said: ‘It is of critical importance that the Premier League is able to enforce its rules consistently to maintain the principle of fairness. The league will now consider what further action it can take to ensure this is the case.’

Alleged breaches of PSR rules have been a major talking point in English football in the past year: both Everton and Nottingham Forest had points deducted last season. The PSR sets a cap of £105 million on clubs' losses across a three-season period.

 

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