Everton have been ordered to pay Burnley £35 million in compensation for the impact of a breach of the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has slammed former Everton owner Farhad Moshiri for what he calls 'incompetence', while noting the club was not 'wilful' in its wrongdoing.
The Legal Ruling
The case, heard by the same Premier League commission that initially handed Everton a 10-point deduction (later reduced to six on appeal), relates to the 2021/22 season. Burnley argued that the breach affected their chances of staying in the Premier League and sought compensation for losses linked to relegation. The Clarets were awarded £26 million in damages and a further £9 million in interest.
Everton have appealed the decision, with sources stating they will 'robustly and thoroughly contest the ruling'. The club expressed being 'surprised and angered' by the decision, calling it 'fundamentally flawed in both law and fact'.
Maguire's Criticism of Moshiri
Kieran Maguire, senior teacher in Accounting and Finance at the University of Liverpool Management School, told the ECHO: 'You've got to question the competence of Farhad Moshiri. In 2024, when Everton were potentially going to breach PSR again, they sold a couple of players before the end of June and avoided the situation. They could have done the same in 2022, or sold Goodison Park or the women's team to themselves as they did in 2025, if they had done their sums properly.'
Maguire added: 'Chelsea, Aston Villa, and other clubs have done this and dug themselves out of a hole. I don't think it's wilful from Everton; I just think it's incompetence.'
Concerns for The Friedkin Group
Maguire expressed concern that The Friedkin Group, Everton's current owners, may struggle to recover any money paid from Moshiri. 'There is also a fear, possibly overstated, that Burnley's finances are such a mess – they are not good at all – that if Everton pays the money and Burnley goes into administration, Everton won't get it back if they win an appeal.'
Interest Charges and Budgeting Failures
Writing on X, Maguire noted: 'If Everton are being charged 11.8% interest on the compensation due to Burnley, that works out at £8,400 a day. This seems very harsh, especially as their original points deduction was due to accountants squabbling over interest on the loan for the new stadium.'
He continued: 'Again, that was down to Moshiri messing up. If he had taken out a specific loan for the stadium, he'd have been in a better position. Remember, he's an accountant himself and knows the rules. He has absolutely no excuse. Also, the senior people at the club budgeted to finish eighth that season, but they finished 16th. Nobody who knew anything about Everton was saying they'd finish eighth.'
Burnley's Statistical Modeling
A summary of the panel's decision shows Burnley instructed expert witnesses Professor Rob Wilson and Will Daniels to perform statistical modeling. They used historical ratings from the gambling industry for Premier League clubs in 2021/22 to run 100,000 simulations of Everton's results, concluding that under each scenario, Everton was more likely than Burnley to be relegated.
Maguire accepts these calculations are debatable but maintains Everton's leadership could have acted differently. 'Burnley's argument is that their figure reflects their borrowing costs, but that reflects the risk associated with Burnley – they are a riskier investment than Everton, which has the backing of The Friedkin Group.'
He added: 'All simulations are based on assumptions. What an economist might view – and I'm from an accounting and finance background, we always fall out – there is a danger that the method uses unusual or unproven assumptions, which can overstate the number.'
Frustration Over Missed Opportunities
Maguire expressed frustration: 'Everton messed up, no doubt, but they've been given a points deduction – twice – and have since tidied up their finances. However, Burnley were relegated on May 22, and Everton must have known the state of their PSR calculation by then, and that they were four points above Burnley. Why did they not sell a player by June 30? They could have made a £20 million profit and none of this would be happening – it's incompetence.'
Precedent and Wider Implications
Everton argue that 'this ruling sets a dangerous and unworkable precedent for English football, given it is constructed on a principle that a club can be in breach of financial rules at any point in a financial year.' Maguire cites previous out-of-court settlements, including Everton and Leeds United over 2021/22 positions, West Ham United to Sheffield United over Carlos Tevez, and Derby County to Middlesbrough and Wycombe Wanderers.
He warns that with Manchester City facing 115 charges, more legal battles could follow. 'Manchester City are innocent of all 115 charges – at present. But lawyers I've spoken to say that if they don't successfully defend their position, they expect phone calls from rivals claiming they would have won the Premier League, FA Cup, or qualified for Europe. It's going to be a very messy situation. If Manchester City win, they could take on the Premier League, and it's difficult to see some at the Premier League surviving.'
Maguire concluded: 'We fall in love with football for what happens on the pitch – the goals, saves, and tackles. Yet we're increasingly seeing football dominated by commissions, legal claims, and financial chicanery. I don't think that's good for the game.'
