EFL guidelines state the minimum amount of points Leicester face being deducted if found guilty

EFL guidelines state the minimum amount of points Leicester City could face being deducted if found guilty of breaching PSR rules.

The club is alleged to have overspent by £17million as they prepare for life back in the second tier – and the Premier League want even more points docked.

Reports state that the Foxes face being docked a minimum of 12 points for the 2025/26 season if they are found guilty of breaching Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR).

According to The i Paper, the Premier League charges issued last week allege a breach of over £17m for the 2021-24 reporting cycle, meaning the club are expecting a heavy punishment handed to them.

Leicester facing minimum 12-point deduction if found guilty of breaking PSR rules under EFL sanctioning guidelines, after club charged with breach in excess of £17m. Full story ⁦@TheiPaperSport⁩ https://t.co/LhmhUJEHEm

— Matt Hughes (@MattHughesMedia) May 29, 2025

Leicester City faces charges for breaching Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) during their Championship season, with an independent commission likely to apply EFL sanctioning guidelines rather than Premier League precedents (e.g., Everton, Nottingham Forest).

EFL guidelines mandate a 12-point deduction for a PSR breach, with reductions on a sliding scale for breaches under £15m (e.g., 9 points returned for breaches under £2m, down to a 3-point deduction for breaches between £12m-£15m).

Leicester’s spending level means they won’t qualify for these discounts. The Premier League may push for a harsher penalty due to aggravating factors, including Leicester’s failure to submit annual accounts by December 31, 2024, and not providing full, prompt assistance to league inquiries.

The i Paper go on to remind readers that the EFL introduced formal sanctioning guidelines in 2018 after financial issues with Birmingham City and Derby.

In 2020, Sheffield Wednesday faced a 12-point deduction for an £18m breach, later reduced to six points on appeal after claiming a verbal agreement from the EFL to sell Hillsborough for £60m, which was blocked.

In 2024, Everton and Nottingham Forest received six and four point deductions, respectively, from an independent commission.

The EFL’s guidelines are stricter than the Premier League’s informal three-point starting penalty for breaches.

Here’s how fans reacted as EFL guidelines state the minimum amount of points Leicester face being deducted if found guilty…

@ChatForest1865: Life comes at you fast. 🫢

@RyanBolton10: I predict league 1

@b_daws19: -12 who gives a fuck, we’re Leicester boys and we’re going up

@RyanDcfc85: 2 relegation spots remain

@LestahGeorge: as expected i said around 15

@BriersGary: We’ll be laughing when we still walk promotion with a points deduction. League is shite. Leicester big dogs are back in town baby & we’re 2 for 2 in titles. 3 times a charm.

@LCFC_Austin: Sack the board

@luke17charlton: Been saying it since Christmas…. Double relegation is happening!!!!

@SweeneySean_: PSR needs a reform IMO. A 3-year rolling period punishes clubs that were financially sound for a decade but exceed limits by, say, £17m in a short span. This stifles ambition for well-run clubs aiming to compete. Point deductions can relegate and cripple clubs—ironic for rules meant to protect them. Try transfer and contract renewal limits instead.

@NotSimmo78: They can’t keep dodging EFL and EPL charges all their lives… Got away with too much already!

@StockpickB: Someone needs to grow a pair and take their case to the external civil courts football is this country is ripe to be blown wide open. The competition act 1998 might be a good place to start

@LUSCarborough: Presumably, 🤔 they will also have to sell players to get on the correct side of PSR, as well as incurring a possible 12 point penalty? 😬 I predict a riot.

@lcfc_mike: Right so best case scenario playoffs

@jonnylem55: Take the hit. Win the playoffs. Piss them off again.

@dharvey4: Long overdue.

@thejodiefry: They get away with it all the time so not getting my hopes up

@leedsnoinfidel: 20 points and a transfer ban would be the fairest punishment

@ChrisSansomee: 1. It’s almost good news because it gets more folk talking about the need for change at the top (lol) of the club. 2. Fuck me how rattled are Don’t Care FC that a team as shite as us stopped them qualifying for the Champions League.

@JaySkyBlueJay84: If they got 12 points deducted, I would presume no automatics for them. Would this put off potential signings as they are likely to have to go up via playoffs or will the wages & club still attractive top calibre of players??