English Football Drowning in €4.85 Billion Debt Despite Record Revenues

English football generates over €10 billion in revenue per season but has accumulated a total debt of €4.85 billion in 2025 — up from €3.3 billion in 2021 — according to a 245-page report published by the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) and reported Wednesday by the Daily Mail.

The IFR’s assessment is damning: 94% of English clubs across all divisions ended in the red. More alarming still, 60% of clubs in the English Football League (EFL) and National League find themselves in a state of insolvency.

Wage Bills and Agent Commissions Out of Control

While the Premier League alone generated over €8 billion in revenue, the explosion in spending wipes out these gains. Between the 2021-2022 and 2025-2026 seasons, wage bills rose 33% in the Premier League and 32% in the Championship. Over the same period, commissions paid to agents jumped from €375 million to €691 million.

The IFR’s projections forecast a cumulative debt of €6 billion by the end of the 2026-2027 season. “While some of our clubs rank among the richest and most competitive in the world, others are on the brink of financial disaster,” said David Kogan, IFR chairman, cited by the Daily Mail.

Regulation Now Unavoidable

The publication of this report comes as the IFR, the independent regulator of English football, gains power. The institution’s mission is to monitor the financial health of clubs and impose structural safeguards. The picture it paints illustrates the paradox of a flagship championship whose economic model, built on wage inflation and intermediary fees, destabilizes the entire English football pyramid.