The European football governing body, UEFA, has sanctioned English clubs Chelsea and Aston Villa with significant fines for breaching its Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations, following a detailed review of clubs under financial monitoring for the 2024–25 season.
The Athletic reported that the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) confirmed on Friday that Chelsea was fined a total of €31 million, while Aston Villa were hit with an €11 million penalty. The fines are split across two key violations, the football earnings rule and the squad cost ratio rule.
Chelsea’s €31m fine comprises €20m for exceeding permissible football-related losses and €11m for surpassing the squad cost threshold. Villa, meanwhile, were fined €5m and €6m for the respective breaches. These figures are part of broader settlement agreements, with Chelsea bound by a four-year monitoring period and Villa under a three-year term.
Both Premier League clubs were flagged for having squad cost ratios above the 80% ceiling set by UEFA for the 2024 monitoring period. As part of their settlement, both clubs will face restrictions on squad building for UEFA competitions. Any additions to their List A squads must be offset by outgoing players, ensuring a positive net transfer balance.
In addition to the English clubs, UEFA also penalised several European sides:
- Barcelona – €15m
- Olympique Lyonnais – €12.5m
- Besiktas – €900,000
- Panathinaikos – €400,000
- Hajduk Split – €300,000
Notably, both Chelsea and Aston Villa had previously attempted to generate revenue by selling their women’s teams to their respective holding companies, BlueCo and V Sports to help meet Premier League Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). However, UEFA does not accept internal asset sales of this kind under its own FFP framework.
Chelsea responded to the decision with a statement welcoming the resolution:
The club has worked closely and transparently with UEFA to provide a full and detailed breakdown of its financial reporting, which indicates that the financial performance of the club is on a strong upwards trajectory. Chelsea greatly values its relationship with UEFA and considered it important to bring this matter to a swift conclusion.
Meanwhile, Villa sources, speaking anonymously, expressed confidence in the club’s ability to remain competitive both domestically and in Europe, despite the financial sanctions.
As may be a bigger concern for Chelsea, Softfootball had earlier revealed that five players are likely to be whisk off from the team after a proper audit is done. Ahead of Enzo Maresca’s second season, the pressure is already mounting not just on him, but on several players fighting to prove they belong in the Blues squad.
The 2025/26 campaign could be the final audition for a handful of players whose futures hang in the balance. With a list of rising stars like Andrey Santos, Josh Acheampong, and incoming Estevão Willian, the time for excuses is over. Perform now or risk being sold; those are the stakes.
