Chelsea were handed an immediate transfer ban and a record £10.75m fine for breaking Premier League rules in three areas - Financial Reporting, Third Party Investment and Youth Development. These breaches came under the previous owner, Roman Abramovich, and some are calling for even more severe punishments.
The Russian billionaire owned the west Londoners from 2003 to 2022 and bankrolled major success at Stamford Bridge, including five Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies. He was then forced into selling Chelsea by the UK government due to alleged relations with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who invaded Ukraine.
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Many believe the Premier League club have been given lenient punishment for their rule breaches. It's even been suggested that any trophies won under Abramovich should at least come with an asterisk, or even be stripped completely.
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premier league trophy
While there are many domestic and continental trophies won under Abramovich, the most interesting titles Chelsea won were the five Premier Leagues. The first two came under Jose Mourinho in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.
In The Special One's first campaign in England, he caused serious waves and steamrolled the competition in a 95-point haul. They finished 12 points clear of Arsenal, who went a season unbeaten the year before.
The Blues then completed back-to-back triumphs when they lifted the iconic trophy again 12 months later. However, second place that year went to Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United. The Red Devils would be the recipients of a retrospective title win if the Blues' accomplishments were chalked off.
That would be the case again in the 2009/10 season, when Carlo Ancelotti steered the Stamford Bridge outfit to a third Premier League triumph. The Italian icon beat Sir Alex to the title by just one point that season.
It would be yet another trophy on record for Manchester City in 2014-15 if Chelsea were stripped. The Citizens are also at risk of losing their titles, but for now, they'd claim Mourinho's third Stamford Bridge title.
The most surprising of the lot would come in the 2016-17 campaign. London rivals Tottenham Hotspur would be the beneficiaries as Spurs finished just seven points behind Antonio Conte's Blues. It would make the north London club Premier League winners for the first time ever.
Chelsea Trophies Come With an 'Asterisk'
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One man who was very firm in his view of the news that Chelsea had been sanctioned with a transfer ban and large fine, was talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan. The former Crystal Palace owner labelled the club 'cheats' due to Abramovich's wrongdoings throughout his tenure.
"You're not an elite football club. What you were, were elite cheats," Jordan said in response to the punishment handed out. "Roman Abramovich has just ultimately, in the last 24 hours, shown the football club to have cheated their way into winning tournaments and ultimately brought the club into disrepute by the nature of the fact that they broke the system"
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He even went as far as claiming an asterisk should be placed next to everything Chelsea achieved under the Russian oligarch's ownership. Speaking to presenter Jim White, he continued:
"If you want to talk about asterisks, which I don't like, you now have to asterisk Chelsea because it's been proven beyond doubt that Chelsea cheated to achieve outcomes."
Watch Simon Jordan's full rant on Chelsea
Information courtesy of the Premier League. Correct as of 19-03-26.