Barcelona were dealt a blow today after the Spanish Football League decided to lower the maximum spending ceiling for the Spanish champions to 270 million euros ($290 million) for this season. The Spanish league has strict spending controls that prevent clubs from overspending on player wages and transfers.

Barcelona’s previous limit was 649 million euros ($697 million), which was raised as part of financial “permissions” sought by the club due to the sale of future TV broadcast rights income.

According to Spanish reports, the current wage bill at the Catalan club is around 400 million euros ($429 million). The penalty for breaching the limit was placed within the division’s spending ceiling, as Barcelona are only allowed to use 50 percent of the revenue to improve the squad.

As it stands, Barcelona are unlikely to make any major transfer deals in January, and further cuts will be needed if the club is to be in a position to strengthen its squad next summer. This comes despite the departure of Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and the Frenchman. Ousmane Dembélé and many other players.

German goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen signed a new contract with the club until 2028 in August, allowing Barcelona to sign new deals. Club president Joan Laporta said on Thursday, “We have to thank him (Der Stegen) for renegotiating his contract because he allowed other players to score.” For his part, Spanish league president Javier Tebas confirmed that he does not know when Barcelona’s financial situation will return to normal.

Debas added in a press conference, “It depends on Barcelona and their business strategy. Maybe they will sell a great player and take a big step forward. We don’t know if they will do that.” He continued, “The whole strategy is set by the club in the medium and long term, we don’t set it.”

On another note, Real Madrid’s maximum spending limit is 727 million euros ($780 million). Atlético Madrid are second behind Los Blancos, with a maximum value of 296 million euros ($318 million). Expenditures subject to special expenditure limits in La Liga include player and staff salaries, transfer consumption costs, agent fees, bonuses and others. The calculation process involves setting clubs’ spending ceilings by deducting their debts and non-sporting expenses from their revenue.