Morecambe have been deducted three points by the English Football League for failing to adhere to an agreed decision imposed in August 2023 after the club failed to pay players on time.
The Shrimps slip from 12th to 14th and their slim play-off hopes are now all-but over.
Owner Jason Whittingham has also been fined £10,000.
That amount is payable immediately and Whittingham has also been given a suspended fine of £20,000 to be activated on 31 May 2024, unless he complies in full with his obligation to replenish the deposit account under the terms of the agreed decision dated 17 August 2023.
Whittingham had been told to deposit an amount equal to 125% of their monthly wage bill to cover any future delays in August last year.
The EFL stated that the following month the deposited funds had been used without being re-deposited however, and they were charged in December.
The club said in a statement that “the board express their significant disappointment at the outcome of the hearing”.
