‘Premier League face backlash after secret Chelsea payment revealed’
Chelsea have hit the headlines again after a historic payment linked to former owner Roman Abramovich has come to light.
The Russian oligarch sold the Premier League side to BlueCo, which is spearheaded by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, for £4.25billion in May 2022.
That brought his 19-year spell in charge at Stamford Bridge to an end, having claimed 21 trophies during that time.
Chelsea’s finances have been in the spotlight since BlueCo took over, with the ownership group spending more than £1.5billion on new signings.
However, the club have failed to win a single trophy under the new owners and currently sit sixth in the Premier League table.
Chelsea could be facing a multi-million-pound penalty after it has emerged they have breached Uefa’s financial rules.
Uefa has rejected Chelsea’s £200million sale of their women’s team, which helped turn their previous £90million loss for 2022-23 into a £128million profit for last season.
The London giants are now reportedly 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.
Chelsea could agree financial settlement after new reveal
The ongoing situation with Uefa isn’t the only issue Stamford Bridge chiefs are currently looking to resolve.
Chelsea revealed during BlueCo’s takeover from Abramovich in May 2022 they had discovered “incomplete financial information” had been submitted to the football authorities between 2012 and 2019.
The London giants then reported themselves to the Premier League, Uefa and the FA, leading to an investigation into the matter taking place.
Chelsea reached an £8.7million settlement with Uefa in July 2023 due to the governing body having a statute of limitations that meant it was able to look back only as far as the 2018-19 season – something the Premier League has no such restriction on.
The Athletic reported on 15 January the club were in talks with the Premier League over agreeing a financial settlement for the payments.
However, The Times reported on 24 April Manchester United missed out on signing Eden Hazard in 2012 after they refused to pay his agent, John Bico, a secret multi-million-pound payment, which would have breached the Premier League and Uefa’s rules.
It said a Premier League investigation is continuing into allegations an offshore company belonging to Abramovich made a £6million payment in 2013 to Bico via a Dubai firm after Chelsea signed Hazard for £32million from Lille in 2012.
If those allegations are proven, surely a financial penalty isn’t enough given that it appears to have played a major role in Chelsea signing one of the best young talents around at the time.
Hazard would go on to register 110 goals and 88 assists in 352 appearances at Stamford Bridge, where he claimed six trophies before joining Real Madrid in a £130million deal in 2019.
| Appearances | 352 |
| Goals | 110 |
| Assists | 88 |
| Trophies won | 6 |
Premier League under pressure to close Chelsea loophole
Although it was under different ownership, the alleged breaches can’t be resolved with a financial settlement as Chelsea clearly benefited greatly from signing Hazard.
The Premier League is already under pressure to close the recent loopholes Chelsea have exploited, and this situation is only likely to increase the tension between top-flight clubs.
Everton and Nottingham Forest were both hit with points deductions last season after they breached the profit and sustainability rules (PSR).
They were given a sporting penalty for gaining a sporting advantage.
The Premier League has to take the same approach towards Chelsea if it wants to avoid a potential backlash from the other 19 top-flight clubs.
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