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LEICESTER — Leicester City has won its appeal against a decision that an independent commission had jurisdiction to consider an alleged breach of Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSRs).
The Premier League first referred the Club to an independent Commission in March 2024 for an alleged PSR breach relating to the assessment period ending June 30, 2023.
The Commission dismissed the Club’s initial challenge to its jurisdiction to hear the case, but the Club’s challenge has now been upheld by an independent Appeal Board, which reversed the commission’s finding.
That appeal has been upheld by an independent Appeal Board on the grounds that the club’s accounting period which ended on 30 June 2023, came after the point the club the club were relegated from the top flight.
"Leicester City welcomes the Appeal Board’s comprehensive decision, which supports our consistently stated position that any action against the Club should be pursued in accordance with the applicable rules," the club said in a statement.
"In its decision, the Appeal Board (which was made of up a panel of three experienced, senior lawyers, two of whom are former Court of Appeal judges) identifies flaws in the drafting of the Premier League's rules.
"In challenging the Premier League’s attempts to charge Leicester City, the Club has simply sought to ensure (in the interests of providing consistency and certainty for all clubs) that the rules are applied based on how they are actually written," it added.
The Premier League, however, said it was "surprised and disappointed" by the independent Appeal Board’s decision to uphold an appeal lodged by Leicester City FC regarding the League’s jurisdiction over the club’s alleged breach of its PSRs when the club was a member of the Premier League.
"The Premier League is very disappointed with the Appeal Board’s decision, and the limited reasons provided for it. The League remains of the view that the original Commission took the right approach in interpreting the rules in a practical and workable way that gives effect to their intended purpose," the Premier League statement read.
"In overturning the original Commission’s findings, the Premier League considers the Appeal Board’s decision fails to take into account the purpose of the rules, all relevant parts of the PSRs and the need for effective enforcement of alleged breaches to ensure fairness among all clubs," it added.