Former Premier League champions, Leicester City handed six points deduction for breaking spending rules

Former Premier League champions, Leicester City, have been docked six points after being found to have breached the EFL’s profit and sustainability rules for the 2023/24 season.

An independent commission recommended the sanction, which was ratified by the EFL board on Thursday, and leaves Leicester outside of the Championship relegation zone only on goal difference, falling from 17th place to 20th.

The Foxes are currently without a manager having sacked Marti Cifuentes last month.

The commission was appointed under Premier League rules last May, after an arbitration tribunal ruled jurisdiction to investigate alleged breaches of EFL rules could transfer to the Premier League following the Foxes’ promotion to the top flight in 2024.

The commission determined the club had breached the relevant P&S threshold by £20.8m over the three-year assessment period ending 2023/24.

The Foxes were also found by the commission to have breached Premier League rules in failing to provide their annual accounts to the league when requested to do so.

Leicester said in a statement: “It is with disappointment that Leicester City acknowledges the independent commission’s decision and the club will use the time available to consider its next steps.”

The club said the points sanction the commission recommended “remains disproportionate” and “does not adequately reflect the mitigating factors presented, the importance of which cannot be overstated given the potential impact on our sporting ambitions this season”.

The Foxes avoided a points deduction in relation to alleged breaches of the top flight’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) for the 2022/23 season after an appeal by Leicester was upheld in September 2024.

An appeal board found in that instance the independent commission appointed under Premier League rules did not have jurisdiction over the club, because it ruled the 2022/23 accounting period ended a month and two days after the club’s relegation from the top flight.

Leicester have dropped down to 20th in the Championship after being docked six points on Thursday, as they were found to have been in breach of the Premier League’s financial rules in the 2023/24 season.