Once a complaint is proved, a Premier League commission must first hear mitigation and aggravation before deciding any sanction. It may then reprimand, fine, order compensation, suspend a person or a club, or deduct points, but a replay or an expulsion can only be recommended.
What happens before any penalty
The commission does not move straight from liability to punishment. It must invite both the board and the respondent to put forward any mitigating or aggravating factors before it settles on a sanction.
That matters because the available powers are largely discretionary. A fine, a suspension, compensation or a points deduction is not automatic once the complaint has been proved.
Sanctions the commission may impose
These are the sanctions open to the commission and the people or clubs they can apply to.
| Sanction | Who it can apply to | Imposed or only recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Reprimand | A club or a person | Imposed by the commission |
| Fine unlimited in amount, with any part of it able to be suspended | A club or a person | Imposed by the commission |
| Compensation unlimited in amount, paid to any person or club | A club or a person | Imposed by the commission |
| Suspension from operating as a manager, match official, official or player | A person only | Imposed by the commission |
| Suspension from matches, or deduction of points scored or still to be scored | A club only | Imposed by the commission |
| A match replayed, or expulsion from the league | A club only | Only recommended, to the board or the league |
For a person, the commission may suspend someone from acting as a manager, match official, official or player for whatever period it thinks fit. For a club, it may suspend participation in league matches and in youth development competitions for as long as it thinks fit.
Its points power reaches both backwards and forwards. The commission may deduct points already won or points still to be won, and if a club is suspended, the opponents in the missed matches are treated as having won unless the commission orders a different result.
What it cannot impose on its own
Two outcomes sit outside the commission's own power to impose. It may recommend that the board order a replay, and it may recommend that the league expel a club from membership.
If the respondent has already left the league by the time a sanction is to be imposed, the same limit applies in a different form. The commission may only recommend a sanction to the EFL or to one of its panels.
Combinations, conditions and registration
The commission is not limited to a single sanction. It may combine penalties, attach a condition to a penalty, and make the sanction bite only if the respondent fails to take a defined step within a defined period.
It may also impose any other penalty or make any other order it thinks fit, though that residual power does not extend to ordering a replay or an expulsion itself. On player registration, it may cancel or refuse the registration of a player who was registered, or put forward for registration, in breach of the rules.
FAQ
Can the Premier League fine a club?
Yes. In this process, the commission may fine either a club or a person after the complaint has been proved, and the amount is unlimited. It may also suspend part of that fine rather than require the whole sum to be paid at once.
Can a Premier League club be expelled?
A club can be the subject of an expulsion outcome, but the commission cannot impose that by itself. It may only recommend expulsion to the league.
Who orders a Premier League match to be replayed?
The commission cannot order a replay on its own authority. It may only recommend that the board make that order.
What happens to Premier League fine money?
Fines and costs are recoverable by the board as a civil debt, while compensation is recoverable by the person or club entitled to receive it. Recovered fines go to the league's running costs or, at the board's discretion, to charitable purposes, and recovered costs are used to meet the commission's costs.
Can the commission order costs?
Yes. It may order the respondent to pay costs, including the fees and expenses of the commission's own members. If the board fails to prove the complaint, it may instead order the league to pay the respondent's costs, and where costs budgeting applies, any doubt over whether costs were reasonably incurred is resolved in favour of the paying party.