Revealed: Nick De Marco's role in a major boost for Sunderland - as he prepares for Newcastle United battle

The rules were introduced last summer and limited Sunderland and their League One rivals to an annual wage spend of £2.5 million.

The Black Cats were firmly against the measure, which affected their transfer business both last summer and in the recent January window.

The Professional Footballers’ Association challenged the rules, arguing that the EFL had failed in their remit to consult properly with the Professional Football Negotiating and Consultative Committee when introducing the cap.

As a result of the successful challenge, League One clubs will revert to the less stringent Salary Cost Management Protocols for the time being.

Those rules say that a club can only spend 60% of its turnover on wages, but owners can inject equity to support turnover.

The change in the rules has a benefit for Sunderland and other big-hitters in the EFL, whose turnover can dwarf that of other clubs, and allows them to splash the cash on new players.

It could hold extra significance for the Black Cats if their takeover by Kyril Louis-Dreyfus is approved.

And De Marco has taken to social media to confirm that he was part of the PFA’s legal team on the case.

He tweeted a link to the website of his firm, Blackstone Chambers, along with the caption: “Delighted to have successfully represented the PFA in this important case about football salary caps.”

De Marco and Blackstone Chambers are also set to represent Mike Ashley and Newcastle United in their legal battle with the Premier League.

A statement issued by the firm last year read: “Shaheed Fatima QC and Nick De Marco QC are acting for Newcastle United FC and Mike Ashley (instructed by Dentons) in a dispute with the Premier League about its rejection of a takeover bid made by PCP Capital Partners, the Reuben Brothers and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) based on its Owners and Directors test.”

Newcastle United last year claimed that the Premier League had “rejected” a £300million takeover funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which withdrew its offer in late July 2020.

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