Chelsea Football Club have been fined £10 million and handed a suspended two-window transfer ban after admitting to multiple breaches of Football Association (FA) financial regulations involving undisclosed payments made between 2009 and 2022.

The sanctions follow a comprehensive investigation into 74 self-reported breaches uncovered by the club’s current owners, Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, after acquiring Chelsea in 2022.

According to the FA, the club admitted making approximately £47 million in undisclosed payments to unregistered agents and third parties during player transfer deals conducted between 2011 and 2018 under the ownership of former owner Roman Abramovich.

An independent regulatory commission initially imposed a six-point deduction on Chelsea, but the sanction was later overturned on appeal. The club was instead issued a suspended transfer ban covering two registration windows, which will only be activated if Chelsea commits further regulatory breaches within the stipulated period.

The FA said Chelsea’s financial penalty was significantly reduced in recognition of the club’s exceptional cooperation throughout the investigation. An initial £26 million fine was reduced to £17.25 million following the club’s voluntary disclosure, then lowered to £11.4 million after an early guilty plea before being further reduced to a final £10 million to reflect penalties already imposed by UEFA and the Premier League.

In a statement, the Football Association said the sanctions were intended to punish the misconduct, deter similar violations by other clubs and uphold the integrity of the game.

The governing body added that the £10 million fine would be invested in grassroots football development across England.

The FA also confirmed that investigations into possible individual misconduct connected to the case remain ongoing.

Chelsea, in its response, welcomed the conclusion of the disciplinary process, stating that all regulatory proceedings relating to the matter had now been resolved. The club also thanked the FA, UEFA and the Premier League for their cooperation during the investigations.

The case brings to a close a series of regulatory reviews into Chelsea’s historical financial dealings following the change of ownership in 2022, while leaving the club under warning that any future breaches could trigger the suspended transfer ban.