Chelsea have £150m buffer against fines from FA, say football finance experts

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Chelsea's £150m Buffer Against FA Fines: What Does It Mean?

Football finance experts have revealed that Chelsea FC would be largely unaffected by a financial penalty from the Football Association (FA) due to a £150m buffer inserted into the takeover deal. The buffer, which is part of a "holdback amount" clause, was included in the £2.5bn sale price to new owners Clearlake.

The figure has been described as a "safety net" for potential financial penalties, including fines for alleged rule breaches during Roman Abramovich's tenure. However, experts believe that the size of the buffer could indicate that a sporting sanction, such as a points deduction or suspension from competition, is more likely than previously thought.

Stefan Borson, a football finance expert and lawyer, noted that the holdback amount would not only cover financial penalties but also consequential losses from any sporting sanctions. This means that Chelsea's new owners could potentially face limited impact from a fine, as they can recoup the majority of the cost through the sale proceeds.

Kieran Maguire, an associate professor in football finance at the University of Liverpool, said that the club would still have to pay the penalty, but the owners could theoretically put the extra £150m into the club without being worse off. The buffer has effectively been taken into consideration in the offer price for the club.

The FA's charges against Chelsea include 74 rule breaches related to payments to agents during Abramovich's era. The club has self-reported some transactions and highlighted that it expects to receive a financial penalty if found guilty. However, Fordstam Limited's accounts reveal that the new owners do not expect to receive £150m of the proceeds from the sale.

The large fees banked by executives and lawyers involved in the sale have also raised eyebrows. Eugene Tenenbaum, a longtime associate of Abramovich, received a £4.8m bonus for his role in the takeover, while BlueCo 22 covered the cost of £41.6m in legal fees incurred by Fordstam.

The UK government has stated that it is prepared to sue Abramovich to release the frozen funds, worth £2.35bn, which were pledged to people affected by the conflict in Ukraine. However, repayment of these funds could only be approved by a specific division of the Treasury.
 
I think it's wild that Chelsea has this massive £150m buffer built into their takeover deal. It basically means they're getting a safety net from any potential FA fines, which is just crazy! 🤯 I mean, if they get slammed with a big fine for whatever, the new owners can just dip into the buffer and cover it themselves. It's like having a free get-out-of-jail-free card! 😂 And don't even get me started on how much money Abramovich's associates are making off this deal... £4.8m bonus? That's just laughable! 💸
 
omg i was so confused about chelsea's takeover deal 🤯 and now it all makes sense! so apparently they have this £150m buffer thingy that's like a safety net for potential fines or whatever 🤑 and experts are saying that means they won't get hit too hard if the fa charges them with something 🙏. but at the same time, if they do get fined, they can just use the money from the sale to pay it off, which is kinda weird 😂. i mean, who doesn't love a good buffer deal? 💸
 
omg u guys ! 😍 so its all about chelsea fc now... like their new owners r totally protected from fa fines lol £150m buffer is everything 💸 i mean what if they got fined & had to pay back that kinda cash tho ?? no way jose... according to experts, the holdback amount would cover any losses cuz of sporting sanctions so yeah, its all good for chelsea now 🙌
 
omg u think its weird that abramovichs old crew is still raking it in after all this time lol they got paid £4.8m for what i guess? idk how they dont get audited 🤑 meanwhile chelsea gets hit with a £150m buffer lol what does that even mean tho? its like a safety net but also kinda a loophole if u ask me. anyway, im just worried about the FA fines and stuff cuz chelsea's financials are already sketchy 😬
 
idk about this new £150m buffer atleast its good for chelsea that they got some safety net if they get fined or something like that 🤑 but it's kinda fishy how much money was paid to Eugene Tenenbaum and lawyers involved in the sale lol did u see that? £4.8m bonus just for being an associate of roman abramovich, what a racket 💸 meanwhile chelsea gets to keep most of the proceeds from the sale and avoid some financial penalties, i guess its better than nothing 🤷‍♂️
 
I just can't wrap my head around this whole thing with Chelsea's £150m buffer... like, what even is that? 😂 I was reading about how it's basically a safety net for potential fines, but at the same time, experts think it's more likely to get them off scot-free. I mean, if they're gonna get hit with some kind of sporting sanction, they can just use the £150m to cover that too. It's like they've got their own superpower. The thing is, I'm not sure how much of this buffer is really coming from Abramovich himself and how much is just being passed on by new owners. It feels kinda fishy. And what about all those execs raking in big bucks for helping with the sale? 🤑 I guess that's just business as usual when it comes to deals like these...
 
🤑 The £150m buffer is like having an insurance policy for Chelsea FC - it's just in case they get fined by the FA for some rule breaches during Roman Abramovich's time 🤔. But, honestly, I'm not sure if it's going to make a huge difference to their bottom line. The experts are saying that it's more likely they'll get hit with a sporting sanction like points deductions or suspension from competition than just a fine 💸. And even then, the new owners can just put the extra £150m into the club without taking on too much financial risk 📈.

I mean, think about it - if they do get fined, the FA's got to consider that the money is already accounted for in the sale price, so it's not like the new owners are getting off scot-free 😐. And with all these lawyers and execs making a pretty penny from the sale, I'm just waiting to see how much of the £2.5bn ends up going straight into Abramovich's pockets 💳.
 
🤔 just thinking about this £150m buffer is like what's the FA even doing here? it's like they're trying to fine Chelsea but they know the owners have already got a safety net that's gonna absorb all these financial penalties... meanwhile, Abramovich's still gotta deal with the Ukraine fund thing and now there's some other fees for lawyers and execs getting paid out of the sale... 🤑
 
I mean, £150m buffer sounds like a nice safety net for Chelsea, but let's think about it this way - if they don't get fined, what's to stop them from just using that money to cover their own losses? It's not like it's going to put the club ahead or anything... also, can we talk about how weird it is that Abramovich's crew got paid so much for selling the club? £4.8m bonus? That's insane! 🤑
 
It looks like Chelsea's new owners have got some sweet protection from the FA 🤑 They've been given this £150m buffer to play with if they get fined or face sporting sanctions. I mean, it's not like they're completely off the hook or anything, but it's definitely a nice safety net to fall back on. The experts are saying that the FA is more likely to go for a sporting sanction than a massive fine, and with this buffer, Chelsea can absorb some of the cost without taking too much of a hit.

It's also worth noting that the fact that the owners can just put the extra £150m into the club means they're not really losing out on anything. It's like they're getting a free gift to spend on the team 🎁. But at the same time, it raises questions about the whole process and why there are these enormous fees being paid out to lawyers and execs involved in the sale. It all feels a bit shady, if you ask me 😏
 
im just thinkin, like, if chelsea got hit with a big fine from the fa, they'd still be pretty okay because they've got that £150m buffer lol 🤑 it's like having an insurance policy against getting slammed financially. the fact that it's part of the takeover deal means their new owners can basically just use it to offset any penalties or losses they might incur. not saying it's a free pass or anything, but it's definitely a pretty big advantage for them...
 
omg u no how stressful this must b 4 chelsea fans rn they got a big shield against fines but still dont know wut's gonna happen w/ them tho 🤔 think its more likely we'll see sporting sanctions than just a fine, that would be so harsh for the team & all de players 💔
 
🤔 I mean, it's pretty crazy that Chelsea's new owners have got this massive buffer to protect them from any financial fallout if they get fined by the FA 🤑. It's like they're expecting a penalty and still getting a £150m bonus 😂. But at the same time, it's not like they're completely off the hook - experts are saying that a sporting sanction is more likely than a fine, which would still hurt them in terms of points deductions or something 🏆.

And what's with all these lawyers and executives making a killing from this takeover deal? 🤑 It's like they're just raking it in while everyone else is worried about the football team's future 💸. I mean, can't we focus on getting the funds to Ukraine instead of making these super rich people richer? 🤷‍♀️
 
I think its crazy how much money is floating around in this Chelsea takeover 🤑 The £150m buffer is like a big safety net for them if they get fined by the FA. But at the same time, it's still gonna hurt their finances if they get hit with sporting sanctions 🤕 I mean, can you imagine having to pay back all that cash just because of some rule breaches? It's just not right 😐 And what about Abramovich's frozen funds? The UK government is trying to squeeze those out of him, but it's a whole big mess 🤯
 
🤔 I think this buffer thingy is super interesting, you know? 🤑 Like Chelsea's owners are basically buying themselves a protection plan against FA fines. £150m is a ton of cash, and if they can use it to cover any penalties, that's a major weight off their shoulders. ⚽️ But at the same time, experts think a sporting sanction might be more likely than just a fine... 🤷‍♂️ Could be a sign of something deeper going on with the club's finances or ownership structure? 📊 Also, those lawyers and execs raking in cash from the sale are giving me life 😒, but £41.6m in legal fees? That's just wild! 💸
 
I'm not sure if I'd feel too good about this buffer thingy they've got at Chelsea... £150m seems like an awful lot of money just for peace of mind 😊. I mean, what's the worst that can happen? A fine or something? I guess it's better than having nothing, but still... it feels a bit unfair to me. And all this drama with Abramovich and the Ukraine funds... ugh, my head is spinning 🤯.
 
I'm kinda surprised they even bothered with a holdback amount 🤔, feels like just another PR move to make the owners look more trustworthy. I mean, who doesn't want £150m just lying around in their bank account? 💸 It's not like Chelsea is exactly swimming in cash after all the financial shenanigans under Abramovich 🤑
 
so like...Chelsea's got this massive buffer in their takeover deal that's basically meant to protect them from getting fined by the FA...it's £150m and it's included in the sale price 🤑. experts think it means they're more likely to get a sporting sanction instead of just a fine, which would be way worse for the club. it's like having a safety net that allows them to absorb potential losses if they get hit with a penalty. but at the same time, it also means that the new owners could theoretically pocket some of the money and not really lose out 🤑🤔
 
So Chelsea's got this massive safety net thingy with 'em, right? £150m buffer that's supposed to protect 'em from FA fines... but honestly, it's like they're just setting themselves up for a points deduction or suspension instead of actual fines. I mean, what's the point of having all that cash if you're just gonna lose it in a sporting sanction?

And don't even get me started on Abramovich's old crew getting paid out like there's no tomorrow 🤑👀. £4.8m bonus for Eugene Tenenbaum? That's some serious change 💸. Meanwhile, the FA's still trying to figure out who they're going after...

I'm not sure what's more suspicious, though: the buffer or the lawyers and accountants raking it in with their fees 💸😒. The UK government is all like "we're gonna sue Abramovich", but at this point, I think we're just watching a big game of football finance whack-a-mole 🎉.
 
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