Chelsea’s Past Under Abramovich Faces Scrutiny as Boehly Ownership Pushes Transparency

Chelsea Football Club is facing 74 charges from the Football Association (FA) over alleged breaches relating to agent payments, mostly during Roman Abramovich’s time as owner.

The FA confirmed on Thursday that the alleged offences cover the period between the 2010/11 and 2015/16 seasons. The club has until September 19 to respond to the charges.

The accusations highlight a turbulent inheritance for the club’s current owners. Abramovich, who bought Chelsea in 2003, oversaw an era of unprecedented success on the pitch but left behind governance and financial controversies.

He sold the club in May 2022 to a consortium led by American investor Todd Boehly and private equity firm Clearlake Capital, shortly after the UK government sanctioned him over his links to the Kremlin following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In its response to the charges, Chelsea said it was satisfied that its cooperation with regulators is nearing completion. “The club’s ownership group completed its purchase of the club on May 30, 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 statement read.

The London side stressed that it has shown “unprecedented transparency” and will continue to work with the governing body.

This is not the first time the new ownership has had to deal with financial fallout from the Abramovich years.

In July 2023, Chelsea reached an agreement with UEFA to pay €10 million (£8.6 million) for failing to provide complete financial information under the previous regime. UEFA confirmed that it had been “proactively” approached by the club’s new hierarchy.

Meanwhile, the dispute over proceeds from Abramovich’s forced sale of Chelsea remains unresolved.

The £2.5 billion generated from the transaction is still frozen, with the UK government insisting it be channelled into humanitarian efforts for Ukraine, while the former owner has argued it should also cover victims of the war in Russia.

For Chelsea, the FA’s investigation signals another attempt to separate its present from its past — a past marked by triumphs on the pitch but now shadowed by questions over financial integrity.