Fans all say same thing as Chelsea blame Abramovich sanctions after reporting staggering £121m losses on annual accounts
CHELSEA have posted staggering losses of £121million for 2021-22.
The Blues blamed sanctions placed on former owner Roman Abramovich as the reason for the extortionate figure.
ReutersChelsea posted losses of £121million in the 12 months leading up to June 30, 2022.[/caption]
In their annual accounts made public on Monday, the club posted an overall net loss of £121.3m
That’s despite an increase in turnover to £481.3m from £434.9m the previous year thanks to fans returning to stadiums after the pandemic.
However, the UK government sanctioned Chelsea, then owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.
Sanctions were in effect from March 10, 2022 until Todd Boehly officially took over on May 30, 2022.
A club statement claimed the sanctions “resulted in extraordinary expenses and loss of revenue”.
Part of the statement read: “The results for the year have been impacted by the sanctions placed on the Club’s previous owner on 10 March 2022.
“As a result of the sanctions, the Club was required to operate within the limitations of a special licence issued by the UK government.
“These restrictions were in place until the completion of the Club’s sale on 30 May 2022.
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“During this period, the Club was restricted in a number of areas including, but not limited to, its ability to sell matchday and season tickets, sell merchandise, accept event bookings, as well as sign contracts with players and commercial sponsorship partners, which collectively resulted in extraordinary expenses and loss of revenue.”
But fans were left claiming the £600m spent on players in recent months had surely contributed towards the figure, rather than the sanctions.
One wrote on social media: “Yeah that and they brought up every available transfer on the market.”
Another wrote: “Not the record spending then…”
And a third sarcastically said: “Nothing to do with major overspending okay got it!”
However, the figures only covered the 12 months leading up to June 30, 2022.
So the £600m spent on transfers alone under Boehly since the American took over was NOT included at all in the accounts posted.
And, despite the losses, Chelsea continue still “comply with UEFA and Premier League financial regulations.”
