Everton’s points deduction reduced from 10 to 6 following appeal
Everton’s relegation threat has been lifted a little further with a reduction in their points deduction penalty.
“Everton have had their points deduction reduced from 10 to six points after an appeal,” global sports media outlet The Athletic reported on Nov. 26 (ET).
Everton were fined a point deduction by the English Premier League (EPL) in November last year for breaching the Profitability and Sustainability Regulations (PSR). At the time, the EPL’s governing body decided that the punishment was a 10-point deduction.
Each year, the Premier League assesses clubs’ compliance with the rules through its Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) based on their combined pre-tax profits over the previous three years. Teams that lose more than £150 million in the assessment period can be disciplined for non-compliance.
According to a Premier League announcement, Everton was penalized with a 10-point deduction after its losses and profits over the past three years were examined and found to be £124.5 million. Initially, it was reported that Everton’s stance ahead of the punishment was that they would vigorously defend their position, emphasizing that they had complied with the rules and arguing that exemptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic would exonerate them of any wrongdoing. However, Everton fans have reacted strongly to the fact that the EPL’s secretariat went straight to disciplinary proceedings against Everton, as opposed to other teams.
With the point deduction, Everton became the first Premier League team to be docked points for violating Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules. Previously, in March 2019, Birmingham City were docked nine points in the English Championship (second tier) for violating FFP, and in November 2021, Derby County were penalized with a whopping 21 points.
Everton immediately appealed the suspension. Everton said they were ‘shocked and disappointed by the Premier League Committee’s decision’ and added: ‘We believe we have been subjected to an unjustified sporting sanction. We have informed the Premier League of our intention to appeal the decision. The process will commence and our case will be heard again by the Appeals Committee. We maintain that we have always been open and transparent with the League and 토토 have respected the integrity of the process,” said the club, explaining that it will pursue an appeal to overturn the decision.
The cuts were applied immediately upon appeal. At the time, Everton were sitting in 14th place in the league with four wins, three draws, and five losses and 14 points, but as the deductions went into effect, they dropped to 19th place, just a point ahead of bottom-placed Burnley (4 points) on goal difference. Fortunately, under Sean Dyche, the club has been in good form and has slowly been picking up points to climb out of the relegation zone.
The good run of form, coupled with the fact that some of the point deductions were reduced on appeal, eased Everton’s worries. The reduction in penalties also allowed Everton to increase the gap between them and the relegation zone.
Before the appeal, Everton were 17th in the league with 21 points, just one point above the relegation zone.
However, with the four points added to their tally, they are now up to 15th in the league with 25 points, ahead of Nottingham Forest and Brentford. The gap to the relegation zone is also five points, which could make it easier to stay out of the relegation battle depending on future performances.