PSG's bottomless pit: French club will post losses of €370m

Paris Saint Germain (PSG) lost €370 million last season, according to L'Équipe, a figure that is explained by including the entire new contract signed by star player Kylian Mbappé, and which justifies the fine imposed on them by UEFA.

The French sports newspaper revealed this Saturday that, with some minor adjustments, those €370m deficits are the ones that will appear when the National Management and Control Directorate of the Professional Football League (DNCG) formalizes the accounts for the 2021-2022 financial year in the coming weeks.

The main explanation for this hole is that the club wanted to account for last season, contrary to logic, Mbappé's remuneration for the following three years and that, according to Le Parisien, is €630m -- figures denied by the French club.

Specifically, around a third has already been integrated into the 2021-2022 expenses.

UEFA -- per a specialist in financial matters quoted by L'Équipe -- has authorised this, knowing that as of the current season a new three-year cycle will begin in which the new control framework for financial fair play that aims to ensure fairness between European clubs kicks in.

Beyond incorporating a part of the future salary of its star striker, PSG has accounted for the wage bill of the rest of the squad at around €600 million, with which the operating budget exceeding €1 billion.

Against that, the French champions posted a record income of €700m. In the current financial year, those revenues should increase once again and exceed the threshold of €800m.

The losses for the 2021-2022 season carried a penalty from UEFA formally of €65m. But as €55m was suspended, they have only had to pay €10m due to the negotiated agreement.

Under this negotiated agreement, PSG will have to adjust their accounts in the next three seasons until the summer of 2025, which in practice will mean a maximum deficit of €60m in net income.

In addition, the weight of the wage bill will have to be progressively reduced and not exceed 70% of income from 2025-2026.

The French club has also committed to reporting to UEFA every six months on the progress of its situation with "intermediate financial objectives".

The Spanish LaLiga has repeatedly denounced the financial management of PSG, which, as they are owned by Qatar's sovereign fund, is not guided by profitability criteria and can lose millions and millions of euros to achieve their objectives of notoriety and political influence, which leaves other teams at a disadvantage, such as the Spanish sides, who do respect the spirit of financial fair play.