Reports suggest the supposed big six English clubs that secretly agreed to play in a European Super League (ESL) will pay just over £20 million to draw a line under their ensuing row with the Premier League, Sky News is reporting.
The figure – which equates to an average of around £3.5m per club – will be announced by English football’s top flight on Wednesday afternoon.
Sky News quotes some sources close to the agreement to have said that it also included the prospect of swinging penalties for any similar transgression by Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur in future.
Any of those clubs which signed up to a similar project would be liable to a penalty of more than £20m and a 30-point Premier League deduction, according to one source.
The size of the ‘fines’ will be comparable to those agreed with UEFA, the governing body of European football, several weeks ago.
Unlike the UEFA fines, however, the Premier League penalties will be a straight cash sum rather than a percentage of next season’s broadcast income – an option that was also discussed in recent weeks.
A future breakaway is now seen as virtually impossible because of impending changes to the Premier League’s constitution, although board members are understood to have been determined to place a formal financial deterrent in the path of any such moves.
The eventual settlement is substantially smaller than an initial proposal made by the Premier League last month, which comprised a £15m fine per club and a substantial – albeit suspended – points deduction.
However, Premier League directors are said to have decided that drawing a line under the European Super League project was a priority ahead of the league’s annual conference – attended by all 20 clubs – beginning on Thursday.
It was unclear on Wednesday whether all six rebel clubs would pay equal sums.
They rapidly abandoned the ESL project amid a huge backlash from rivals, fans and politicians.
Only Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid have yet to formally withdraw from the ESL – raising the prospect of them being banned from next season’s Champions League.
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