Neymar’s proposed £198m transfer from Barcelona to Paris St Germain could bring the transfer system to a halt and bring in an investigation to the shadowy financing of the ‘sport’.
The Spanish football association announced this morning that they wouldn’t sanction the international release of the player due to concerns over Financial Fair Play.
UEFA have always taken a half hearted approach to FFP but the influx of money from Qatar threatens to turn the highest level of the game into a farce.
When Barcelona and Real Madrid are spending £50m plus on players there is little outcry but a noisy neighbour with new money has sparked a different response.
Neymar left Barcelona’s training session this morning when the club accepted the 222m euros offer.
With the overall deal including wages, signing on fee and agency fees coming to around £500m there is clearly no prospect of PSG living within their means.
Most major leagues have some sort of FFP rules which are designed to protect clubs overloading on debt and staying solvent.
This season the SFA awarded Sevco a licence to play in UEFA competitions despite exceeding the rules on debt over a three year period.
Once Sevco publish their audited accounts for the year to 30 June 2017 it is likely to raise questions from the SFA and put participation in next season’s UEFA competitions in doubt.