Everton ordered to pay Burnley £35m compensation over PSR breach that cost Clarets their place

Everton have been ordered to pay £35.1m in compensation to Burnley after an independent Premier League disciplinary panel ruled that the Merseyside club’s breach of Profit and Sustainability Rules in 2022 contributed to Burnley’s relegation that season.

Burnley, who finished four points behind Everton in May 2022 and were relegated as a result, brought the case arguing that Everton’s PSR breach gave them an unfair sporting advantage. The panel awarded Burnley £26m in compensation plus a further £9.1m in interest payments, falling short of the £51m Burnley had originally claimed.

Everton reacted with fury to the verdict, describing it as “fundamentally flawed in both law and fact” and filing an immediate appeal. In a club statement, Everton said they “do not recognise the findings of the panel” and argued that the ruling “sets a dangerous and unworkable precedent for English football” by establishing that a club can be found in breach of financial rules at any point within a financial year.

The club also pointed to the scale of the penalty relative to previous sanctions in English football. Everton noted the award exceeds the £10.75m fine handed to Chelsea for financial and reporting breaches under former owner Roman Abramovich, as well as the compensation paid by West Ham in the Carlos Tevez case.

Everton had originally been found guilty of exceeding the Premier League’s PSR threshold by £19.5m over a four-year cycle ending in 2022. That breach resulted in a 10-point deduction in November 2023, subsequently reduced to six points on appeal. The same three-man panel that handed down that sporting sanction also heard Burnley’s compensation claim.

The PSR violations occurred under former owner Farhad Moshiri, but the compensation order is directed at the club rather than any individual. Everton were keen to stress that the ruling will not affect their summer transfer plans under current owners The Friedkin Group.

“Everton believes the panel’s ruling misrepresents the clear evidence presented by its legal representatives and that an appeal will be successful,” the club said.