‘Aston Villa PSR celebrations cut short as alarming financial concerns remain’
Aston Villa may have avoided a PSR sanction from the Premier League but they now face a more serious financial challenge.
The Villains were considered the most under-threat team in England’s top-flight to receive a sanction for failing the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR).
Villa missed out on qualification for Champions League football last term, losing to Man United on the final day of the season.
Without the revenue from Europe’s most prestigious club competition, and having made pre-tax losses of £205.8million [The Athletic], the Villains looked in serious trouble and Football Insider revealed on 25 June that Villa were looking to make £30m from sales ahead of the 30 June accounting deadline.
However, Villa sold their women’s team to V Sports, the parent company that owns the Midlands club, giving themselves a financial boost to avoid a punishment.
But despite avoiding a punishment from the Premier League, according to The Athletic, the club now face a “more alarming” financial hurdle to overcome.
Aston Villa face ‘most serious challenge’ from UEFA
As reported, PSR was a pressing issue due to the time constraints, but senior figures have described UEFA’s squad cost rules (SCR) as “the most serious challenge that faces Villa, with compliance a difficult task”.
The European governing body’s rules are the reason there has been “little celebration” in selling the women’s team and avoiding a PSR-related sanction.
SCR rules state that “spending on player and coach wages and transfers and agent fees must be capped at 70 per cent of a club’s revenue from the 2025-26 season onwards.”
Concerningly for Villa, club sources state the “wage-to-turnover costs are projected in the mid-eighties [per cent]”, meaning there will need to be a concerted effort to remove wages from their books.
Aston Villa risk missing out on Champions League without additions
Football Insider Verdict
At the mid-way stage of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign, Villa found themselves sitting ninth, having collected 29 points from 19 games.
The Midlands club were in the middle of a testing Champions League campaign, but the club’s performances domestically were underwhelming.
However, the additions of Axel Disasi, Marco Asensio, and Marcus Rashford on loan proved game-changing, as the trio of temporary signings helped fire Villa back into contention for a top-five finish.
Whilst the club ultimately fell short, the addition of some quality in the transfer market proved the Villains were close to having a squad good enough to compete.
But all three of those players have returned to their parent clubs with no permanent deals in sight.
Villa have proven they are close to being able to qualify for the Champions League, but last season showed their current crop of players are not good enough to get them over the line without the addition of a higher level of firepower, something that now looks out of reach with the latest update on their financial situation.