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The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/Sparky-moon on 2026-03-17 09:41:50+00:00.
What kind of deterrent is a £10.75m fine? The club should have received a points deduction.
So here are the facts:
Chelsea made illicit payments worth more than £47.5m over an eight-year period which helped them sign seven players, including Eden Hazard and David Luiz, who are, undoubtedly, two of their best-ever
Some of the recipients were seven unregistered agents who were paid more than £23m
A further £19.3m was paid to two entities in connection with signing Willian – another resounding success – and Samuel Eto’o And £3.8m went on the transfer of an unnamed player (possibly, therefore, a minor)
Around £1.4m was paid to former sporting director Frank Arnesen, former scout Piet de Visser and another unnamed person, and it should have been treated as remuneration
The money was paid by “third-party entities”, primarily in the British Virgin Islands (a tax haven), associated with Roman Abramovich
The payments involved “deception and concealment” and were made in the full knowledge of some former Chelsea officials and directors
There were 74 charges and 36 separate payments in all
During that time – between 2011 and 2018 – Chelsea won two Premier League titles, the Champions League, two Europa Leagues, two FA Cups and the League Cup. That is eight major trophies.
And the punishment? A £10.75m fine, a gentle rap on the knuckles (with a nine-month ban on signing academy players and a suspended first-team embargo) and – in the Premier League’s judgment – basically a “thank you for your co-operation”.
So, effectively, nothing to see here. What kind of deterrent is that? Look at the evidence and then the outcome. They got off incredibly lightly. Remarkably, not a single Chelsea employee or director is named. Even though many were interviewed.