Under PSR, Premier League clubs cannot make a loss of more than £105m over a rolling three-year period. "Clubs have been able to just trade academy players between each other and that would automatically go into their accounts," BBC Sport's football issues correspondent Dale Johnson explains. So it was basically a way of getting around the regulations, increasing your limits and these academy players were being used as commodities." There have been other clear examples of clubs reluctantly cashing in on their academy stars to get above the PSR threshold. "I do think it is slightly sad that academy products are now seen as a vehicle to sell and generate profit," Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said.

Source: BBC April 02, 2026 10:30 UTC