Everton are reportedly considering taking legal action against the Premier League regarding their supposedly lenient punishment of Chelsea’s financial rule breaches after a lack of a points deduction left the Toffees gripped by “anger and dismay.”
It was announced last week that Chelsea had been handed a financial penalty of $14.3 million (£10.75 million)—the largest ever dished out by England’s top flight—after self-reporting hidden payments, mainly to player agents, worth around $63 million from 2011 to 2018.
Chelsea were given a suspended one-year ban on the purchasing of senior players, alongside a nine-month academy transfer ban for unrelated issues. Both the fine and the suspended ban were reduced compared to usual regulations.
Despite deliberately breaking the division’s rules, the Blues have escaped without any form of sporting sanction—much to the disappointment of Everton.
The Merseyside outfit were ultimately docked eight points during the 2023–24 Premier League campaign for two separate breaches of profit and sustainability rules. The Guardian claim that Everton are planning to write to Richard Masters, chief executive of England’s top flight, asking for more clarity of the justifications of Chelsea’s punishment while a “legal challenge” is also under consideration.
Nottingham Forest, who were docked four points in the same 2023–24 season, are also thought to be in contact with Everton although it remains unclear whether they will support any potential legal action.
Chelsea are not the direct subject of this hypothetical lawsuit, but they could still face some repercussions if the Premier League are found to have acted inconsistently with regard to their own rulebook.
David Moyes Captures Evertonian Fury
Everton manager David Moyes spoke for all of those on the blue half of Merseyside when he reacted with hostile suspicion to the news of Chelsea’s punishment. “I don’t think they have explained it well enough in the reasoning what the fine was and why it was,” the Toffees boss insisted before his side swept past Chelsea last weekend.
“I think they have to explain exactly what has happened here. If they don’t then we are never going to understand their reasoning why.
“This is me not being anything against Chelsea, absolutely not, I’m just saying that everybody would like to know; Everton supporters, for the pain they had to go through when they had a huge points deduction, and other clubs as well.
“Those points deductions may well have been correct, I don’t know, but we need to see what is the difference? What would you rather have, a £10 million fine or a 10-point deduction? The money you get for your league place now, that might cover it. It would be good if we could get more of an explanation. How much is the £10 million fine having an effect, really?”
Why Did Chelsea Avoid a Points Deduction?
Chelsea’s ownership have come under criticism for many reasons but they actually operated with some rare savvy in this particular instance.
The illicit payments which have come under such scrutiny took place exclusively under Roman Abramovich’s reign as Chelsea owner. Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital spotted these irregularities while conducting due diligence before purchasing the club in 2022, deliberately setting aside around $200 million to cover any potential punishments down the line. The size of that excess suggests that Chelsea were also surprised by the relatively modest nature of the fine, although a separate investigation by the Football Association is still ongoing.
What little literature the Premier League did release used two core reasons to justify why a sporting sanction for Chelsea “was not appropriate”:
- The club self-reported
- The hidden payments would not have seen Chelsea breach financial regulations at the time.
Chelsea’s cooperation with the Premier League investigation was repeatedly lauded by the competition, who have come up against defiant rebuttals during their ongoing battle with Manchester City. The Guardian go so far as to claim that there would have been no chance of any conviction without Chelsea’s support, effectively ruling out a points deduction from the beginning of negotiations.
The second pillar of the Premier League’s argument is a little shakier. The organization claims that Chelsea would have adhered to the division’s rules on bookkeeping even if these payments to agents had been out in the open—which begs the question why they were hidden in the first place.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Legal Challenge’—Chelsea’s Record Punishment Too Lenient for Premier League Rival.
