GM football fans. It’s Monday, Nov. 24 - The Premier League has voted to update its financial regulations, Real Madrid plans on shaking up its ownership, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURE
Premier League MD12 (Nov 24): Manchester United vs. Everton, 20:00 GMT / 15:00 ET. United have racked up 42 Premier League wins against Everton, the most victories any side have against another in the competition. Everton have won just one of their past 12 Premier League games against United, and just one of their last 32 against United at Old Trafford. United forward Matheus Cunha is facing a late fitness test after picking up an injury in training. See the Premier League table here.
Results…
Premier League: Arsenal 4-1 Spurs | Leeds 1-2 Villa | Liverpool 0-3 Forest | Burnley 0-2 Chelsea | Bournemouth 2-2 West Ham | Brighton 2-1 Brentford | Fulham 1-0 Sunderland | Wolves 0-2 Palace | Newcastle 2-1 Man City
La Liga: Barcelona 4-0 Athletic | Elche 2-2 Real Madrid (Table)
Bundesliga: Bayern 6-2 Freiburg | Dortmund 3-3 Stuttgart | Wolfsburg 1-3 Leverkusen (Table)
Serie A: Inter 0-1 AC Milan | Napoli 3-1 Atalanta | Udinese 0-3 Bologna (Table)
TOP TALKING POINTS
Premier League Changes
Premier League clubs have voted to introduce new spending caps next season, replacing the current profit and sustainability rules (PSR). Fourteen out of the 20 Premier League clubs voted in favour of the squad cost ratio (SCR) rules, which was the minimum number of votes needed to pass through the proposals.
Under the new rules, clubs can spend a maximum of 85% of revenue on squad-related costs. Each club will be set a ‘green threshold’ (85% of revenue) and a ‘red threshold’ (30% over the green threshold). If a club is above the green but under the red, they will receive a fine. But if a club exceeds the red threshold, they will receive a fixed six-point deduction, rising by one additional point for every £6.5m spent above that limit.
The league also approved Sustainability and Systemic Resilience (SSR) to improve clubs’ financial sustainability in the short-, medium-, and long-term. Dive deeper into how this works here.
In related news, Premier League clubs will no longer be able to sell assets like hotels and women’s teams to themselves. Clubs previously used this method to circumvent financial rules, with Chelsea selling two hotels to a sister company and Everton selling its women’s team to the parent company.
Europe’s Close Title Races
Roma now lead the Serie A table on 27 points after 12 matches, two points more than AC Milan and Napoli. Inter, who started the weekend in top spot, are now fourth following their 1-0 loss in the Milan derby, with Christian Pulisic scoring the only goal in the 54th minute. See the Serie A table here.
Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain are narrowly leading the French top-flight table following a 3-0 win over Le Havre. Despite both Marseille and Lens losing three matches this campaign, compared to PSG’s one, they sit just two points behind the reigning European champions. "I'm looking for us to improve and for the team to play better, but right now getting results matters because we have to think about the next match,” PSG manager Luis Enrique said after the match. See the Ligue 1 table here.
In the Scottish Premiership, leaders Hearts suffered their first league defeat of the season, losing 1-0 away at Aberdeen—read the match report here. With second-place Celtic winning 1-0 at St Mirren, Hearts’ lead at the top of the SPFL has reduced to four points, and Celtic still have a game in hand. See the SPFL table here.
Madrid’s Ownership Shake-Up
Real Madrid have confirmed plans to change the club’s ownership model to allow for external investors for the first time in their history. Since the club’s founding in 1902, it has been ‘owned’ by its socios (club members), a model also used by fellow La Liga clubs Barcelona, Athletic Club, and CA Osasuna. Any change must be approved by the socios.
Club president Florentino Perez revealed plans to create a new subsidiary in which outside investors could buy around 5% of the world’s most valuable football club. Perez argues that the socio model, while historically important, restricts Madrid’s competitiveness, particularly in the transfer market. Any change must be approved by the socios in a referendum.
Perez said the club remains fully behind the controversial Super League idea. “We continue to insist that it is an indispensable project for the future of football because, without it, the gap between English football and the rest of Europe would be definitively unbridgeable,” he said. The president also noted recent court rulings that favoured the club against UEFA related to the Super League.
POLL
Should artificial turf be banned in professional football?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Eberechi Eze made history by becoming the first player to score a Premier League hat-trick in the north London derby (More)
> Real Madrid have apologised after using a picture of the wrong footballer in a video paying tribute to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva (More) | Barcelona won their first match at the revamped Spotify Camp Nou 4-0 over Athletic Club (More); fans chanted Messi’s name in the 10th minute (Watch)
> Championship leaders Coventry came from two goals behind to beat 10-man West Brom 3-2 (More); see the Championship table (More)
Americas
> Nine-man Vancouver Whitecaps won the Western Conference semi-final, eliminating LAFC from the MLS Cup on penalty kicks after a 2-2 draw (More); see Son Heung-min’s incredible free-kick (Watch) | The Eastern Conference semi-finals, Cincinnati vs. Inter Miami and Philadelphia vs. NY City, will conclude shortly after publication (Live Result)
> Gotham FC claims their second NWSL Championship in three seasons, both times as the bottom seed, after beating Washington Spirit 1-0 (More)
> Pittsburgh Riverhounds have won their first USL Championship title after overcoming FC Tulsa 5-3 on penalties following a goalless draw (More)
> Argentine club Lanus wins Copa Sudamericana after three penalty saves by goalkeeper Nahuel Losada (More)
Rest of the World
> Shanghai Port won its third straight Chinese Super League title with a 1-0 victory over Dalian Yingbo (More)
> Al Nassr continue their unbeaten run in the Saudi Pro League, with nine wins from nine, following a 4-1 victory over Al Khaleej (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Friday’s Poll: Should micro shin pads be banned from the game?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (62%)
🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (35%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 M.F: “In motorsport, safety is driven by regulations mandated by the sanctioning bodies, as drivers and teams focus on performance to the detriment of safety. In the same way, footballers will trade a more protective shin guard for comfort and performance unless a minimum standard is mandated.”
👍 H.R: “I played in a tough league in the North East, and players need full shin protection. You only have to see players leaving the field after a rough tackle to see why.”
🙅♂️ D.W: “If the players have not got the sense enough to recognise that they are putting themselves at risk, then they need to accept the consequences. Their respective clubs should state that they should not wear them, and if they do, they will not get paid during their injury and rehabilitation period.”
EXTRA TIME
Pogba was substituted on after 27 months.
Canada’s World Cup home kit leaked.
Ronaldo scores an overhead kick at 40.
How Forest tactically exposed Liverpool.
Remembering the manager whose 33-year tenure was a world record.
Why Guardiola’s half-time team talks cost City £3m.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Which four Japanese players have won Premier League medals?
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I prayed for a hat trick, and I got it today.
Answer
Shinji Kagawa (2012-13 Manchester United), Shinji Okazaki (2015-16 Leicester City), Takumi Minamino (2019-20 Liverpool), and Wataru Endo (2024-25 Liverpool).
