Hazard, Willian Transfers Investigated: Premier League punishes Chelsea with £10.75m fine

Chelsea have been fined £10.75 million ($14.27 million) and received a suspended one-year transfer ban in relation to historical breaches of Premier League rules, it was announced on Monday. The London club have also been hit with an immediate nine-month academy transfer ban, the Premier League said. The sanctions relate to information shared with the league by the consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly following their takeover of Chelsea from Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in 2022.

The Premier League found that between 2011 and 2018, undisclosed payments by third parties associated with Chelsea were made to players, unregistered agents and others.

However, the league determined that even if the payments had been properly included in historical financial submissions, the club would not have been in breach of the profitability and sustainability rules (PSR).

Officials said that Chelsea's "proactive self-reporting, admissions of breach and exceptional co-operation" were also mitigating circumstances when it came to deciding the severity of the punishments to be imposed upon the west London side.

Chelsea have also been charged by the Football Association with 74 alleged breaches of the English governing body's rules, also in connection with the information shared by the Blues' new owners.

Responding to Monday's announcement, the club issued a statement saying: "Chelsea Football Club is pleased to confirm that the club has reached a settlement with the Premier League in relation to historical regulatory matters that were self-reported by the club in 2022."

The Blues also said they welcomed the Premier League's recognition of its "exceptional co-operation" and that "without those voluntary disclosures and the act of self-reporting, a number of the Premier League rule breaches may never have come to the attention of the League".

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