Leeds United's Premier League rivals Chelsea have been slapped with a staggering 74 charges by the Football Association (FA), with the governing body claiming violations of their rules regarding dealings with football agents, intermediaries and third party investment in players.
The allegations span from 2009 to 2022 and chiefly concern the period between the 2010/11 and 2015/16 campaigns. Chelsea must respond by September 19.
An FA statement declared: "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."
These purported violations took place during Roman Abramovich's ownership of the West London outfit, with Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital assuming control in May 2022. Chelsea have issued their own statement in reply, stating: "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.", reports Football London.
"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.
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"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."
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