Rarely do you see a fixture list released with an asterisk against a team’s entire playlist because it is unclear which league they will play next season.
That was the level of uncertainty surrounding Derby County’s future in the championship when the second level released the matches for the 2021/22 campaign.
The Rams were recently fined £ 100,000 for violating EFL accounting rules following a decision by an independent commission, but the threat of a retrospective points deduction still hovered over the club’s head.
Such was the nature of last season’s relegation battle, anything but a points deduction would have seen Wayne Rooney’s side slip into League One, with Gareth Ainsworth’s Wycombe Wanderers nervously waiting to hear if they would get a second season in the championship. at their expense.
Any hopes the Presidents had to play in the second tier 2021/22 were extinguished on Friday when the EFL decided not to appeal the Independent Commission’s decision not to dock points from Derby’s total for the latest campaign, meaning the Rams will definitely play next season’s championship.
While the EFL remains adamant in its belief that Derby has violated FFP (Financial Fair Play) rules so severely that it is entitled to a points deduction, after reading the 52-page written verdict, the league’s lawyers simply concluded that they would not win any future appeal.
Wayne Rooney’s page is currently under a transfer embargo / Athena Pictures / Getty Images
In layman’s terms, the decision came to a question of assessment and once the independent Commission had stood up for Derby once, they would only do the same again.
As part of the ruling, however, Derby has been told to revise accounts for the financial years ending June 2016, 2017 and 2018, which means that this saga may well move for many years to come.
So what happens now you’re probably asking yourself?
First of all, Derby has until kl. 16 on Wednesday 21 July to pay the fine of £ 100,000 issued to them, while the transfer of their accounts for the three years mentioned above must be completed by Wednesday 18 August.
Mel Morris has come in for criticism over his run of Derby in recent years / Michael Regan / Getty Images
Back in 2018, Derby owner Mel Morris caused a stir when he sold Pride Park to himself in an attempt to avoid breaking the FFP rules. The panel has already agreed to the valuation of 81 million pounds at the arena, which means that their accounts for the years after the said sale should be good, but the result of all accounts before the sale remains in the air.
Derby is now free to concentrate on building for the 2021/22 championship season – yes, as free as you can be when you have been placed under a transfer embargo until their accounts have been reformulated – with EFL’s decision not to appeal the latest which means that this question is now closed.
However, it remains to be seen what sanctions – if any – will be imposed after their accounts have been restructured from 2016, 2017 and 2018, and the club has received a final warning about their financial conduct going forward.
