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From the start of the 2026/27 season, the Premier League’s current financial framework is Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) and Sustainability and Systemic Resilience (SSR), replacing Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR). PSR still applies to 2025/26 and earlier relevant periods, and the League retains enforcement powers for those seasons. The systems measure different things: PSR assessed overall profit over a rolling three-year period, while SCR limits specified squad costs season by season.

What do PSR, SCR and SSR mean?

  • PSR means Profitability and Sustainability Rules. It was the Premier League’s framework for assessing a club’s overall profit across a rolling three-year period. It applies to the period ending 2025/26 and may remain relevant to enforcement for earlier periods.
  • SCR means Squad Cost Ratio. It controls specified playing-squad costs in relation to a club’s football-related revenue and net profit or loss on player sales. It is the current Premier League squad-cost system from 2026/27.
  • SSR means Sustainability and Systemic Resilience. It tests clubs’ short-, medium- and long-term financial resilience, in addition to controlling squad costs.

The Premier League states that “PSR and SCR differ in what they measure.” SCR is not simply PSR under a new name: the scope of costs and the assessment period are different. The League’s overview of the transition and systems is in its 2026 financial-system explainer and its November 2025 statement on the new rules.

How the systems compare

System What it measures Assessment period Threshold or test Potential intervention
PSR Overall profit Rolling three-year period No historical loss ceiling is specified in the official sources cited here. PSR enforcement may still relate to 2025/26 and earlier periods; the cited current explainer does not specify a particular sanction.
Premier League SCR Covered squad costs relative to football-related revenue and net profit or loss on player sales Season-based 85% Green Threshold, with an initial multi-year allowance of up to 30% above it; the starting Red Threshold is 115%. A March-test breach above the Red Threshold can lead to a sporting sanction. Final confirmation above 85% may result in a levy, subject to an offset mechanism; levies apply to breaches from 2027/28 onward.
UEFA squad-cost rule Squad costs under UEFA’s separate regime Calendar year 70% squad-cost ratio for clubs in UEFA competitions, as described by the Premier League. UEFA’s own requirements apply; the cited Premier League explainer does not detail UEFA sanctions.
Premier League SSR Short-term working capital, medium-term liquidity and long-term equity Annual assessment on 7 July, with further tests possible after a Call-In Event Three financial-resilience tests, rather than a single squad-cost percentage. A club failing a test must submit a business plan; possible measures include controls on registering new contracts or a spending limit.

How much can a Premier League club spend under SCR?

There is no single fixed pound amount in the SCR threshold. The Green Threshold is a ratio: covered squad costs must be no more than 85% of football-related revenue plus net profit or loss on player sales. The amount therefore depends on each club’s relevant revenue and player-trading result.

Costs counted in the ratio

  • Player wages and head-coach pay.
  • Agents’ fees.
  • Transfer-fee amortisation or impairment.

The revenue basis includes club-generated commercial and matchday income, football distributions, net profits from non-football stadium events, and income from domestic, European and international competitions. The 85% figure is the Green Threshold, not an unconditional spending allowance: SCR also has a higher Red Threshold and a multi-year allowance that can change under feedback mechanisms.

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How monitoring and thresholds work

Clubs and the Premier League agree revenue estimates before the season. Monitoring takes place in October and after the winter transfer window at the March test. The initial allowance is 30% above the Green Threshold, producing a starting Red Threshold of 115% of the Green Threshold; the allowance can later fall or recover under the rules.

If a club is above the Red Threshold at the March test, it can face a sporting sanction. Where costs exceed the Green Threshold but remain below the Red Threshold, the League describes later confirmation using accounts in June and October. A club confirmed above the 85% Green Threshold may face a levy, subject to an offset mechanism. Levies apply for breaches from 2027/28 onward.

What happens if a club also plays in Europe?

A Premier League club in UEFA competitions must satisfy a separate UEFA squad-cost ratio of 70%, according to the Premier League’s 2026 explainer. The Premier League’s 85% SCR Green Threshold does not replace that UEFA requirement. The Premier League assesses SCR by season; UEFA’s assessment is on a calendar-year basis.

What do SSR’s three financial tests check?

SSR addresses a club’s ability to withstand financial pressure beyond its spending on the squad. The Premier League’s 2026 thresholds are:

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Test What it checks Requirement
Working Capital Test Short-term cash resources Each calendar month, projected adjusted cashflow plus qualifying working-capital funds must total at least £12.5 million, under the Premier League’s 2026 rules.
Liquidity Test Medium-term resilience across the current and following season Liquidity headroom must be non-negative after an £85 million stress adjustment, under the Premier League’s 2026 rules. The calculation includes 40% of squad market value as a liquid asset.
Positive Equity Test Long-term balance-sheet health The Positive Equity Ratio limit is 90% in 2026/27, 85% in 2027/28 and 80% from 2028/29, under the Premier League’s 2026 rules.

SSR compliance is assessed on 7 July each year, and further testing may follow a Call-In Event. A club that fails a test must provide a business plan for returning to compliance. Possible measures include controls on registering new contracts or a spending limit. The League sets out the tests and consequences in its 2026 explainer.

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Where can you find the rules and a club’s financial position?

The Premier League Handbook sets out competition obligations; the League says club-finance material is primarily in Section E. Club accounts are a separate source: clubs submit accounts annually and disclose payments to agents, according to the League’s Off the pitch FAQ.

To understand a particular club’s reported finances, use that club’s filed accounts and check the reporting period, accounting policies, and whether figures are audited results or League-specific calculations. Those records do not automatically present the same measure as SCR or PSR.

The official sources cited here establish that historical PSR assessed overall profit over a rolling three-year period, but do not substantiate a specific historical PSR loss ceiling or a detailed list of allowable PSR adjustments. Avoid treating an uncited headline figure or adjustment list as established by these sources.

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