Premier League shareholders meet over salary controls capping Leeds United spend at £137m

Leeds United and fellow Premier League sides could be subject to a wage cap of sorts in seasons to come, according to The Times.

As part of the “New Deal for Football” Premier League stakeholders met on Wednesday to discuss changes to cup competitions, reducing parachute payments, wealth redistribution in the EFL and financial sustainability.

Part of that discussion is reported to have centred around clubs’ wages-to-turnover ratios, which have become increasingly unsustainable, particularly in the Championship.

UEFA are set to impose a 70 per cent wage cap on clubs, based on their total revenue, meaning sides will be prohibited from spending more than 70 per cent of their earnings on wages and bonuses.

Currently, Spain’s top flight imposes a similar strategy which has seen FC Barcelona struggle to register players in recent summers as they battle to reduce their wage bill.

"Clubs would be limited to spending a fixed percentage of their revenue in a calendar year on player wages, transfers and agent fees,” report The Times.

“The Premier League is likely to impose a higher figure than the 70 per cent agreed by UEFA, which will phase in the new limit from next year — 90 per cent for the calendar year 2023, 80 per cent for 2024 and 70 per cent from 2025.”

Leeds’ spend on wages does not currently exceed their revenue, though, according to last year’s accounts.

An estimation by football finance expert Kieran Maguire places Leeds’ prospective wage cap at 80 per cent of annual revenue at £137 million.

This falls short of the ‘Big Six’ whose cap at 80 per cent ranges from £263 million for Arsenal (6th-highest) and £456 million for Manchester City (highest).

Premier League clubs are expected to wait for Prime Minister Liz Truss’ stance on imposing an independent regulator and widespread footballing reform before moving forward with sweeping changes.

Financial sustainability measures however, such as wage controls, are likely to be brought in anyway, report The Times.