According to the Daily Mail, Villa was fined 125,000 pounds for illegal use of the multi-ball system and banned the system in the first three home games of the new season.
Villa was severely punished on the first day of the Premier League season because they violated a little-known Premier League rule for the fifth time last season, which is related to a multi-ball system designed to keep the game going smoothly. Villa is now banned from using the multi-ball system in the first three home games of the new season due to multiple violations.
The fine of 125,000 pounds means that since the start of the 2024-25 season, Villa has paid a total of 305,000 pounds for continuous violations. The Premier League official statement said: "The Premier League has reached a penalty agreement with Villa Club, and the club admits to violating the rules of the Premier League multi-ball system." The
multi-ball system was first introduced in the 2022-23 season, aiming to keep the game smooth, reduce delays and enhance the fan experience. Clubs must adopt a multi-ball system in each league and strictly abide by relevant rules and guidance to ensure that the home team does not gain a competitive advantage by abusing the system. One of Villa's violations occurred in the last home game against Tottenham last season. Villa was fighting for Champions League qualification at the time and they were accused of letting the caddies help the home team throughout the game, including arranging additional caddies and backup balls behind the goal in the offensive direction, but the defensive direction did not do so. Villa players have taken the ball from the caddies many times, which directly violates the rules of the multi-ball system. Referee Peter Banks asked the question to the "multi-ball system supervisor" after halftime. In the end, Villa defeated Tottenham 2-0, successfully entered the Champions League zone and eventually ranked sixth in the Premier League.
Since this is Villa's fifth violation, Premier League authorities believe that the caddie was instructed to deliberately help the team, so they imposed a penalty on Villa's ban on the multi-ball system. In the next match against Newcastle, Crystal Palace and Fulham, Villa can only use a single ball system. When the ball goes out of bounds and is close to the court, the player must pick up the ball and start the game again. If the ball is difficult to pick up, the caddie is allowed to pick up the ball.