As Chelsea fans digest the 74 charges thrown at the club, many comparisons with Manchester City’s infamous 115 charges have been drawn.
The Football Association (FA) hit the west Londoners with 74 charges relating to alleged breaches of regulations around working with agents, intermediaries and third party investment. A spokesperson from the club stated the allegations, which all took place during Roman Abramovich’s reign, were flagged by the current administration when the takeover was completed in May 2022.
A worst case scenario could result in the Blues being hit with a points deduction, but sources within the club claim they are confident this fate can be avoided. After the charges were announced, football.london has taken a look the situation compared to the ongoing investigation at City.
A subtle difference in the two cases is the parties charging the clubs. Chelsea’s charges have been levelled by the FA, while City’s were from the Premier League – this scenario could change, as the Premier League informed BBC Sport their investigation into the Blues is ongoing.
Chelsea will also argue their conduct cannot be compared with that of City’s. Firstly, they point out the offences were carried out by different owners, meaning any punishment lumbered on the club would be inflicted on parties who were not there when the alleged offences were committed.
Secondly, while Chelsea’s current owners state they provided the FA and the Premier League with, what they describe as, “unprecedented access” to their files and accounts, whereas 35 of City’s 115 charges relate to a “failure to co-operate with Premier League investigations December 2018 – Feb 2023.”
Broken down, City’s charges are: “54x Failure to provide accurate financial information 2009-10 to 2017-18′, 14x Failure to provide accurate details for player and manager payments from 2009-10 to 2017-18, 5x Failure to comply with Uefa’s rules including Financial Fair Play (FFP) 2013-14 to 2017-18 and 7x Breaching Premier League’s PSR rules 2015-16 to 2017-18,” as well as the aforementioned charges around non-cooperation.
While Chelsea’s situation was prompted after they self-reported the issues they discovered, City’s alleged wrongdoing was brought forward after a series of emails were leaked by German outlet Der Spiegel. Accounts from City Football Group, who own the Citizens, also showed they had spent £30.6m on legal fees up to the end of the 2023-24 campaign to fight their case, which was an increase of close to £11m compared to what they spent the year before. In comparison – meanwhile, Chelsea have not threatened a legal battle and have also agreed an £8m settlement with UEFA, who were also investigating the issue.
The Blues are hoping to come to a similar resolution with the FA and, if they decide to file their own charges, the Premier League, instead of a sporting sanction such as a points deduction or a transfer ban.
Explaining the charges in full, the FA released a statement which said: “The Football Association has today charged Chelsea FC with breaches of Regulations J1 and C2 of The FA Football Agents Regulations, Regulations A2 and A3 of The FA Regulations on Working with Intermediaries, and Regulations A1 and B3 of The FA Third Party Investment in Players Regulations.
“In total, 74 charges have been brought against Chelsea FC. The conduct that is the subject of the charges ranges from 2009 to 2022 and primarily relates to events which occurred between the 2010/11 to 2015/16 playing seasons. Chelsea FC has until 19 September 2025 to respond.”
In response, the Blues posted on their club website: “Chelsea FC is pleased to confirm that its engagement with The FA concerning matters that were self-reported by the club is now reaching a conclusion. The club’s ownership group completed its purchase of the club on 30 May 2022.
“During a thorough due diligence process prior to completion of the purchase, the ownership group became aware of potentially incomplete financial reporting concerning historical transactions and other potential breaches of FA rules.
“Immediately upon the completion of the purchase, the club self-reported these matters to all relevant regulators, including the FA.
“The club has demonstrated unprecedented transparency during this process, including by giving comprehensive access to the club’s files and historical data. We will continue working collaboratively with the FA to conclude this matter as swiftly as possible.
“We wish to place on record our gratitude to The FA for their engagement with the club on this complex case, the focus of which has been on matters that took place over a decade ago.”
Want to keep up to date with the breaking and important Chelsea stories whilst on the move? Well now you can!
Click this link to follow the football.london Chelsea WhatsApp channel, where you’ll be kept up to date on the latest Blues news wherever you are.
Just remember to turn on the notifications once you’ve followed, and you won’t miss a beat!
