UEFA is about to take motion to stop other clubs from joining Chelsea in profiting from a Financial Fair Play loophole to splash astronomical amounts of cash in a brief period. The Blues have relentlessly delved into the transfer market since Todd Boehly became the club’s owner while seemingly avoiding FFP limitations.
Since buying Chelsea from Roman Abramovich in May 2022, Boehly has sanctioned over £400million in transfer fees across the summer and January transfer windows.
And the spending before the winter deadline is not expected to finish there, with Graham Potter targeting a right-back, midfielder and one other forward.
It has smashed the previous record of transfer expenditure across a single season set by Manchester City, who splurged £328m in 2017/18.
Nevertheless, in line with The Times, UEFA plans to come back down hard on Chelsea and some other club considering adopting the identical method.
European football’s governing body will set a five-year maximum on the length of time over which a player’s transfer fee could be split.
Chelsea’s relentless transfer activity has raised mass questioning over how they act inside FFP regulations, but a loophole has emerged, which they’ve used under Boehly.
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The American owner has handed out mega contracts to spread the impact of Chelsea’s spending.
He most recently tied Mykhaylo Mudryk right down to an eight-and-a-half-year deal, the longest in Premier League history.
Before the Ukrainian winger, Benoit Badiashile signed a seven-and-a-half-year contract, David Datro Fofana penned a six-and-a-half-year deal and Wesley Fofana seven years.
The method known as amortisation, meaning the annual cost of a player’s fee shall be less if their contract is longer.
For instance, UEFA’s FFP calculations will see Chelsea spending just over £9m per 12 months on Mudryk, whereas if he only signed a four-year deal, it could be around £20m.
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But UEFA has decided to take motion after quite a few clubs raised concerns about how freely Chelsea have been capable of spend in recent months.
It has insisted the five-year restriction may even be in place to guard clubs like Chelsea from descending into financial issues further down the road.
Under FIFA regulations, clubs can hand recent players contracts that stretch beyond five years in the event that they are allowed under the laws of a specific country.
Nevertheless, starting this summer, there shall be a five-year maximum on deals in terms of amortisation.
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