Aston Villa and Chelsea were fined by UEFA last year for breaching financial regulations, and one of the Premier League clubs could face new penalties.
Aston Villa and Chelsea were fined by UEFA last summer (Image: Getty Images)
Football finance expert Kieran Maguire says Aston Villa could be in breach of UEFA’s financial rules for the second year in a row. Villa were fined around £9.5m last year as a result of another breach in 2024.
This violation occurred due to failure to comply with the goals of the governing body. Villa were handed two penalties, the first of which amounted to £4.3m for breaching income limits and the second of £5.2m for breaching UEFA’s team costs rules.
Earlier this month, it was reported that the Villa Park club are once again set to breach UEFA’s team cost rules. Under this regulation, clubs will be fined if they spend more than 70% of their revenue on player wages, transfers or agents.
Villa is not believed to be at risk of breaching the initial settlement agreement reached last year, which would result in more serious sanctions being imposed. But despite complying with the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules, clubs face potential new penalties.
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read more: Aston Villa face huge penalty for ‘breaching financial rules’read more: Two Premier League clubs face UEFA penalties for breaching financial rules
His income decreased as he moved from the Champions League to the Europa League. Now, Maguire has revealed that new offenses could result in new fines.
Speaking in the Overlap fan debate, he said: “Villa may have broken UEFA rules. Both Villa and Chelsea broke the rules at the beginning of the season and had to follow a very strict business plan. There is a risk that Villa will break the rules again and in that case they could be fined more than points.”
Villa’s success in complying with national financial regulations was aided by the £55m registration they received for selling the women’s team to their parent company. Such related party transactions are not permitted to be declared as income by UEFA.
Chelsea sold their women’s team to a sister company last year, helping them stay within the Premier League’s financial limits. The Blues posted a pre-tax profit of £128.4m in June 2024, which also included £200m from the sale of the women’s team.
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Aston Villa could face a new fine from UEFA for breaching the governing body’s financial regulations (Image: Getty Images)
In order to comply with league regulations, two hotels were also sold to affiliated companies. Villa and Everton are also following suit as they aim to boost their profits. “Such issues were prohibited under UEFA rules, but were allowed under Premier League rules at the start of the season,” Maguire added.
“Under the SCR (Team Cost Ratio), you cannot include yourself in the sale of women’s teams, real estate or other unusual assets. So the Premier League has become more in line with UEFA rules.”
“It’s been difficult to make that happen, but we’ve seen both Aston Villa and Everton sell their women’s teams into their own companies in the last 12 months. It’s within the rules and completely acceptable.”
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