Swindon Town imposed a transfer window fee restriction on Young Star.
The English Football League has imposed a transfer window fee limit on Swindon Town due to late HMRC payments.
The League Two team has also been penalized £2,000 for 39 days of late payments since the current 12-month term began on July 1, 2023.
On appeal, the restriction on paying transfer fees was decreased from three to two transfer windows.
The second window limitation, which expires in August 2024, is suspended until a new infraction occurs.
The EFL acknowledged that “the club’s defaults were inadvertent and not intentional”.
The debts totaled five figures, and the club was seven days late paying an HMRC debt on 22 June 2023, five days late paying another HRMC obligation on 22 October 2023, and 27 days late paying ticket revenues owing to a third-party club.
The transfer window restriction prevents the club from paying or pledging to pay any transfer, compensation, or loan fees during the current window.
“The payment defaults were the result of oversight/poor administration within the club during a period of internal change,” according to an independent disciplinary panel report.
“The defaults were not (for example) due to the club being in financial difficulties or unable to pay, or due to the club choosing not to pay a debt when it fell due.”
Swindon were taken over by Australian billionaire Clem Morfuni in July 2021 after a lengthy court struggle, and he stated in November 2023 that the club “was not” for sale, though he would consider conversations if contacted.
Morfuni was also accused last month with breaking EFL regulations by transferring club shares in September 2022.
