Chelsea have announced that they made a £90.1m loss during the 2022-23 campaign.
With co-owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital spending in excess of £1bn across their first three transfer windows in charge, Chelsea's ability to meet all financial regulations has come under scrutiny.
The club's official position is that Premier League and UEFA rules will all be adhered to, but the latest development will no doubt cause concern among the fanbase.
While turnover for the year in question rose to £512.5m, Chelsea have posted a loss of £90.1m during their last completed season.
That is down from the figure of £121.4m that was recorded for 2021-22, yet it takes Chelsea's deficit up to £211.5m for the past two campaigns.
In order to pass the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules, Chelsea must not post a loss of more than £105m across a three-season period.
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During the January transfer window, Chelsea were open to offers for a number of homegrown players such as Trevoh Chalobah, Conor Gallagher and Armando Broja.
The sale of an academy graduate would make significant headway into their deficits, yet a suitable offer did not arrive for any of the trio.
Ahead of the next accounts being filed before or on June 30, Chelsea realistically need to make a number of sales in order to ensure that punishments do not follow.
Everton have already been handed a six-point deduction for going £19.5m over their permitted deficit up to and including 2021-22, and face a further charge alongside Nottingham Forest.
However, there are certain allowances, such as the coronavirus pandemic and government-imposed sanctions, that Chelsea will likely have to use to argue their case that they would have otherwise been compliant with each rule.
Nevertheless, that will no longer apply past this campaign and major cutbacks will have to be made going forward, particularly if Chelsea fail to earn a return to European football.
Darren Plant
