Euroleague: Introduced Financial Fair Play rules from 2027

In an effort to control team spending and limit the…inequities caused by the differences in budgets between clubs, the Euroleague introduced the new Financial Fair Play regulations, which will come into full force from 2027 (and… piloting the 2025/26 and 2026/27 seasons).

These are essentially terms that were approved by 13 shareholder teams (among them Panathinaikos and Olympiacos) in the first week of September by the ECA (EuroLeague Commercial Assets) general meeting. The basic principle is how teams that spend more than they should according to Financial Fair Play return to the league in the form of a luxury tax money that will be shared among the teamswhich have fully complied with the specific limits.

The new system establishes three types of fees (High, Basic and Low) depending on the type of players, with a minimum and maximum spend. Exceeding them means imposing a luxury tax. However, exceptions are foreseen, whose contracts are not counted together with the rest. These concern: to two players designated by the team (the two longest contracts, obviously), to players under 23 years of age, to 25% of the salaries of players who have completed three years with the team, to players who have been injured for more than two months .

If teams exceed the basic limit then they pay €0.50 per additional € if they spend up to 10% more, €0.75 per additional € between 10% and 30% above the limit and €1 per additional € at 30% up to 50%. If they also exceed the high pay level, then the “tax rates” change to 0.5 euro per additional euro if they spend 10% more, one euro per additional euro between 10% and 30% more and 1.5 euro per additional euros in the range of 30% to 50%.

The Euroleague provides the following example: If a team spends €15.1 million on net wages (tax is not included in any calculation) with the Basic Pay Level at €8 million and the Top at €13.5 million, then end up paying the league a 900,000 euro luxury tax. It is noted that there is no limit to the amount of money that each club can pay for players’ salaries, if they want to spend and have no problem paying luxury tax.

According to the press release: “The Shareholders’ Meeting of Euroleague Commercial Assets (ECA) has approved the implementation of the Competitive Balance Standards (CBS), a new set of regulations that strengthens the scope of the current Financial Fair Play regulations.

These regulations were implemented for the first time in the 2014-15 season with the aim of protecting the collective interests of teams from the financial risk that a club can create, limiting the financial contribution of club shareholders and promoting business performance. The new regulations will coexist with the already active ones, such as the overdue liabilities control system or controls on the overall financial position of the clubs, among others, in order to:

– To align the objectives of the interested parties by setting minimum and maximum levels of remuneration to the unions according to the collectively generated income, strengthening the commercial cooperation between them.

-To promote sustainability and competitive balance between the clubs based on the total revenue they all generate together.

-To prevent inappropriate practices by monitoring each club’s compliance with predetermined financial levels prior to signing players each season.

-Increasing transparency between the groups participating in the event.

The new CBS system was developed over the last two seasons under the responsibility of a committee of clubs and was presented and agreed by the EuroLeague Players’ Association (ELPA).

CBS represents the natural evolution of the existing Financial Fair Play Regulations to meet current club and league realities by providing equal pay levels for all clubs based on the average collective revenue of EuroLeague clubs rather than the revenue of each individual team. This concept is based on the pan-European ecosystem of the league, harmonizing the impact of different tax models across the continent, valuing all indicators in net amounts.

The updated FFP will introduce three common salary levels for all teams – Basic, High and Low – which will be calculated using clubs’ average defined revenue (matchday revenue, advertising and other) generated over a two-season period.

These levels will mark the minimum and maximum spending for each club on player contracts, while allowing exemptions for certain players with the aim of attracting, developing and retaining the best talent.

This is the first time that a mandatory spending floor has been established for player fees in FFP, ensuring that a minimum net 32% of total collective revenue is spent on athletes, thus strengthening partnership with players whose contribution to increase in revenue will directly affect their salary levels.

Basic concepts of CBS

Low Reward Level “LRL” (32% of the clubs’ average specified revenue, calculated at fair market value over a two-season period): The minimum net amount that clubs must spend on the wages of registered players. Affiliated clubs, i.e. clubs that do not participate with a long-term contract in the Euroleague, will have the possibility to reduce the Low Fee Level.

“BRL” Basic Fee Level (40% of average defined club revenue): The maximum net amount that all clubs can spend on all registered player salaries, excluding the categories: Anchor Players, Under 23 Players, Long Stay Players group (Extended tenure), Long-term injured and medium range exception.

High Reward Level “HRL” (60% of clubs’ average specified revenue): The maximum net amount that each club can spend on wages of registered players, including Anchor Players, and excluding players under 23, long-stay players ( Extended-Tenure Players), the Long-Term Injured and the average exception.

Competitive Balance “CBC” Compensation: Any club that spends above and beyond the specified Base and/or High Fee Levels will be required to reimburse all other clubs that remain within the specified limits.’