Bournemouth owner Bill Foley has called for the introduction of a 'hard salary cap' to limit the spending of clubs like Newcastle United. The American investor led a consortium which completed a reported £150 million of the Cherries in December, adding to his portfolio of sporting investments including NHL franchise Las Vegas Golden Knights.
Foley celebrated a Stanley Cup triumph in a parade of the city earlier this month, with the ice hockey side defeating the Florida Panthers in a five-match series. The 78-year-old believes the NHL's salary cap should be implemented in the Premier League in order to boost the competitiveness of the division.
Foley also suggested it would limit the advantage of 'sovereign'-backed clubs such as champions Manchester City and Newcastle. The owner's recommendation comes amid recent reports that Premier League sides are mulling over a spending cap which would be tied to the bottom side's television revenue.
Foley told talkSPORT. "In my view the lower table teams are really undervalued. In the NHL, we have a hard salary cap that you can't go over, and that has brought quality to the league. That's why a team like ours was able to win the Stanley Cup.
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"I would like to see more control of our spending in the Premier League, because we can't compete spending with a sovereign, but we can improve and play exciting football. I'm just one guy and I'm respectful of how the Premier League run things, I want to be part of the club, not the outlier."
Newcastle's owners will have spent in excess of £250 million since the takeover in October 2021, once a deal for AC Milan star Sandro Tonali is concluded. However, last season saw Premier League clubs spend close to combined total of £3 billion, with Chelsea's investment dwarfing the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and even West Ham at the summit of the season's spending table.
