Chelsea hit with $13.7 million fine, multiple bans due to past owner’s transgressions

English Premier League giants Chelsea have been handed a $13.7 million fine and a suspended one-year ban from signing first-team players due to multiple breaches of financial rules back when the club was owned by Roman Abramovich. The ban has been suspended for two years, meaning Chelsea will still be able to sign first-team players during upcoming transfer windows as long as the club commits no further violations.

Importantly, the league opted not to impose sporting sanctions such as a points deduction, which could have had immediate consequences for Chelsea’s position in the table. The punishment instead centers on financial penalties and administrative restrictions tied to historic reporting failures, per The Athletic.

At the core of the case were £47.5 million in undisclosed payments made between 2011 and 2018, many of which were connected to player transfers and intermediary deals. The Premier League found that these payments, made through third-party entities associated with Abramovich, were not properly declared in financial submissions to football authorities. Abramovich sold the club to a consortium led by Todd Boehly back in May 2022.

Investigators determined the payments were made with the knowledge and approval of senior club officials at the time, which suggests a deliberate incomplete financial reporting. Several high-profile transfers were connected to the investigation, including deals involving players such as Eden Hazard, Samuel Eto’o, Willian, Ramires, David Luiz and Nemanja Matic.

Crucially, there has been no suggestion of wrongdoing by the players themselves, with the issue instead centred on how payments tied to transfers were recorded and reported. Despite the severity of the findings, the Premier League acknowledged that even if the payments had been properly reported at the time, Chelsea would still have remained compliant with profitability and sustainability rules (PSR). That assessment played a significant role in avoiding harsher competitive sanctions.

Another key factor was the conduct of the club’s current ownership group, led by Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly, which purchased Chelsea in 2022. During the due diligence process of that takeover, irregularities were discovered and voluntarily disclosed to the Premier League, the Football Association and UEFA.

The league cited Chelsea’s self-reporting and extensive cooperation as major mitigating factors in determining the final punishment. This also resulted in the initial financial penalty being reduced from £20 million to £10.75 million.

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