‘Chelsea set for £8m blow after financial breach’
Chelsea are facing an £8million blow for breaching the financial rules following their heavy spending.
BlueCo, which is spearheaded by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, has spent around £1.5billion on new signings since purchasing the club in May 2022.
Enzo Maresca’s side secured their return to the Champions League after finishing fourth in the Premier League table in the 2024-25 season, while they also won the Conference League last month.
The London giants’ latest accounts for 2023-24 showed their overall revenue fell from £513million to £469million, while their wage bill dropped from £404million to £338million.
Chelsea sold their women’s team to BlueCo last summer for around £200million, helping them turn their previous £90million loss for 2022-23 into a £128million profit for 2023-24.
However, Uefa has rejected the women’s team sale as the governing body operates under different rules to the Premier League.
Chelsea and Aston Villa have breached Uefa rules
Chelsea and Aston Villa both appear to have breached Uefa’s squad cost ratio (SCR) rules in 2024.
Stamford Bridge chiefs have reportedly been in talks over a settlement for an overspend, with proceeds from the women’s team sale and a transaction that saw club hotels transferred to BlueCo, excluded from the balance sheet.
Uefa rules apply to Chelsea following their participation in the Conference League.
Clubs in European competitions were required to keep spending on player wages and fees to 80 per cent of revenue last year.
The i Paper reported on 25 June Chelsea and Aston Villa are set to be fined next week for breaching Uefe’s financial rules.
Finance expert Stefan Borson told Football Insider Chelsea’s fine could be worth around £8million.
The Blues are also at risk of breaking the rules again in the next assessment period after qualifying for the Champions League.
Aston Villa purposely breached financial rules
Borson told Football Insider Villa could have purposely breached the financial rules after realising they couldn’t achieve their ambitions without taking some risks.
Unai Emery’s side qualified for the Champions League in the 2023-24 campaign after finishing fourth in the Premier League table.
They then went on to reach the quarter-finals of the competition before being knocked out by eventual winners PSG.
Villa will be playing in the Europa League next season following their sixth-place finish in the latest campaign.
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