Chelsea Football Club has avoided a six-point deduction after successfully appealing a ruling that initially included both a points penalty and a transfer ban. The Premier League side instead received a suspended transfer prohibition alongside a substantial fine.

The Football Association (FA) investigation uncovered financial irregularities dating back to the club’s ownership under Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich between 2009 and 2022, with most breaches occurring between 2010 and 2016. The new ownership group discovered these compliance failures after completing their takeover in 2022. The FA formally presented 74 separate charges in September of the previous year.

During the Abramovich era, Chelsea made payments totalling £47 million to unregistered agents and third parties between 2011 and 2018. Several high-profile transfers came under scrutiny, including the acquisitions of Belgian forward Eden Hazard from Lille in 2012, Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto’o from Anzhi Makhachkala in 2013, and Brazilian winger Willian from the same Russian club later that year. Other notable signings flagged in the investigation included German forward André Schürrle from Bayer Leverkusen in 2013, Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matić from Benfica in 2014, and Brazilian defender David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain in 2016.