The Football Association has imposed a £10 million fine on Chelsea Football Club and a suspended two-window transfer ban following 74 breaches of agent payment rules during Roman Abramovich’s ownership, with the club’s current owners having self-reported the misconduct after the 2022 takeover .
An independent Regulatory Commission initially handed Chelsea a suspended six-point deduction, but the club successfully appealed that sanction. An Appeal Board set aside the points deduction and replaced it with a suspended two-window registration ban, which will remain in place until 30 June 2027 .
The breaches, which occurred between 2011 and 2018, involved undisclosed payments totalling approximately £47 million to unregistered agents and third parties . The deals under scrutiny include the high-profile signings of Eden Hazard from Lille, Willian and Samuel Eto’o from Anzhi Makhachkala, as well as transfers of David Luiz, Ramires, Andre Schurrle and Nemanja Matic . Notably, there is no suggestion of wrongdoing by any of the players involved .
The club’s new owners, Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, self-reported the historical rule breaches in 2022 during their due diligence process before completing the purchase from Abramovich . The consortium had withheld £100 million from the £2.5 billion sale price over concerns about “unforeseen liabilities” after examining the club’s finances . The current ownership has since worked transparently with regulators, voluntarily disclosing thousands of documents .
In a statement, Chelsea said: “In 2022, the Club self-reported potential historical rule breaches to all applicable regulators. Following that report, it has worked openly and transparently with all regulators, including voluntarily and proactively disclosing many thousands of documents” .
The FA confirmed it is continuing to investigate individual misconduct arising from the case . The £10 million fine will be invested into grassroots football.
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