'salary Cap Would Be Legally Challenged By Clubs'

A Premier League connection to present a arguable net headdress will beryllium legally challenged by immoderate clubs, according to nan caput of nan Professional Footballers' Association, who warned it "cannot beryllium imposed unilaterally".

Top-flight clubs will meet adjacent week and are group to ballot connected whether to switch nan existing profit and sustainability rules (PSR) that limit financial losses.

An replacement top-to-bottom anchoring model (TBA) would restrict nan magnitude a nine tin walk connected subordinate wages, agents and transportation fees to 5 times nan income earned from broadcasting and prize money by nan bottommost nine successful nan league.

If approved, a headdress would beryllium imposed connected clubs' spending, sloppy of their ain income.

PFA main executive Maheta Molango said nan players' national is opposed to specified a move and claimed it "would not withstand immoderate ineligible challenge".

He told nan BBC's Radio 4 Today programme: "We person a inclination successful shot to deliberation that we're supra nan law, but shot is not supra nan law, and unluckily nan reality is you cannot artificially headdress someone's expertise to make a living.

"The convention knows themselves that moreover earlier nan PFA does it, location will beryllium clubs wrong their ain room that would besides legally situation that measure, and nan only ones who'll extremity up winning are nan lawyers.

"There are ways to work together connected things astir financial sustainability, but this cannot beryllium imposed unilaterally.

"This needs to beryllium negotiated pinch nan correct group and location are immoderate mechanisms that request to beryllium respected."

TBA is being trialled by nan Premier League, alongside a squad costs ratio (SCR) strategy of financial power that allows clubs to walk a percent of their full revenues connected squad-related costs.

On 21 November its clubs will ballot connected whether to adopt either aliases some models, and switch PSR that let losses of £105m complete a three-year reporting cycle.

In February clubs chose to proceed pinch PSR, but it has been criticised by immoderate for limiting their expertise to invest.

Nine of nan Premier League's 20 clubs must comply pinch Uefa's SCR rules arsenic a consequence of qualifying for Europe, and immoderate judge it makes consciousness to align nan regulations.

In bid to promote financial sustainability, Uefa permits participants successful its competitions to walk up to 70% of their revenues connected their squads, while nan Premier League has said it would let 85%.

BBC Sport has been told that a number of clubs would ballot for SCR to beryllium implemented only if it was accompanied by anchoring, truthful that those pinch nan largest revenues did not get excessively acold up of nan remainder and competitory equilibrium was protected.

Last twelvemonth 16 clubs voted to behaviour elaborate study of TBA, pinch only Manchester United, Manchester City and Aston Villa voting against.

All 3 were known to beryllium concerned that being pinned to nan gross of nan league's bottom-placed nine would consequence putting them astatine a disadvantage compared to immoderate of their European rivals, who only person to adhere to SCR rules.

At nan clip United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe said anchoring would "inhibit nan apical clubs successful nan Premier League, and nan past point you want is for nan apical clubs successful nan Premier League not to beryllium capable to compete pinch Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Paris St-Germain - that's absurd".

In nan 2023-24 play 20th-placed Sheffield United earned astir £110m. So past play nary top-flight nine would person been capable to walk much than £550m connected subordinate wages, amortised transportation fees and agents mixed if TBA had been successful force.

Meanwhile, a European nine generating revenues of £1bn, for example, would beryllium capable to walk £700m, while still adhering to Uefa's SCR rules.

City spent £413m connected wages unsocial past year, pinch full revenues of £715m. With amortised transportation fees and agents fees added to those outgoings, they could beryllium 1 of a number of clubs adjacent to a breach if TBA was successful force.

Some clubs opposed to TBA are known to fearfulness that it could frighten nan Premier League's semipermanent status, whitethorn put immoderate clubs astatine threat of an contiguous breach and could disincentivise growth.

BBC Sport has learned that, nether nan existent proposals, immoderate nine breaching nan rules for a 2nd clip would beryllium sanctioned pinch a six-point deduction, positive a further constituent for each £6.5m of overspend.

Clubs opposed to nan TBA strategy opportunity nan league's competitory equilibrium is sound arsenic it is, and that immoderate clubs are only successful favour because it will mean little money is spent connected subordinate wages.

In February nan PFA issued what nan Premier League described arsenic "legal demands" complete concerns it had astir nan effect that anchoring could person connected subordinate contracts if introduced.

The convention said nan PFA had been fixed "multiple opportunities to supply feedback".

In 2021 nan PFA's declare that a planned net headdress by nan EFL for League One and League Two was "unlawful and unenforceable" was upheld by an independent arbitration panel.

The Premier League has been approached for comment.