Key Takeaways:
- Mauricio Pochettino has argued that Tottenham Hotspur should be awarded the 2016-17 Premier League title after Chelsea were fined £10.75m for historic breaches in March
- Chelsea self-reported 74 breaches of FA rules following their 2022 takeover, admitting to £47m in secret payments to unregistered agents and third parties from 2011 to 2018
- The Premier League concluded that Chelsea would not have breached profitability and sustainability rules had all payments been disclosed, opting for a financial penalty rather than a points deduction
Pochettino Questions Chelsea’s 2016-17 League Triumph
Mauricio Pochettino, who managed Tottenham Hotspur from 2014 to 2019, has called for Chelsea’s 2016-17 Premier League title to be removed due to the club’s breaches of competition rules, suggesting Spurs should instead be declared champions for that season. Pochettino’s remarks follow a £10.75m fine imposed on Chelsea in March for historical infractions, after the club admitted 74 breaches of Football Association regulations under its previous ownership.
"We should have been awarded it"
Mauricio Pochettino believes his Tottenham side should have been awarded the 2016-17 Premier League title because of Chelsea’s 74 financial rules breaches 🏆 pic.twitter.com/akTmG0BK58
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) September 10, 2026
Antonio Conte’s Chelsea finished that campaign seven points ahead of Pochettino’s Spurs, who ended as runners-up. Upon acquiring Chelsea in 2022, Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital reported the regulatory breaches, spanning unregistered payments totalling £47m made between 2011 and 2018 to agents and third parties connected to numerous high-profile transfers.
Pochettino commented: “We should win one title, one Premier League. We should have been awarded it. [Chelsea] were punished, they admitted, so that’s it? The title should be for the team that was second. It’s true that we didn’t compete with the same rules. It’s completely fair to say that we didn’t compete before the start of the season with the same card.”
Spurs’ Near-Miss and Pochettino’s Reflections
During his five-year spell at Tottenham, Pochettino steered the club to a second-place Premier League finish in the 2016-17 season and oversaw their run to the 2019 Champions League final, though Spurs failed to secure a major trophy under his guidance. The Argentine, who took over as Chelsea manager for the 2023-24 season, further reflected: “Maybe with the same rules, if we apply the same things, maybe we could’ve signed some players that would have made the team better or scored more goals… If they admitted they broke the rules, the Premier League title was for the second-best team.”
He added: “I’m not scared to say the truth. The Chelsea fans will be upset with me because I’m saying this, but if we were at Tottenham and broke the rules I’d admit the same.”
Premier League Investigation: Details and Outcomes
In connection to Chelsea’s self-reporting, the club issued a statement emphasising their full cooperation with regulatory authorities, saying they had “treated these matters with the utmost seriousness, providing full cooperation to all relevant regulators”.
The Premier League’s investigation revealed that third-party payments involving Chelsea were made to players, unregistered agents, and other external parties without disclosure to the appropriate authorities. Transfers highlighted in the report from 2011 to 2018 included those of Eden Hazard, Samuel Eto’o, Willian, Ramires, David Luiz, Andre Schurrle, and Nemanja Matic. There was no suggestion of wrongdoing by any of the players involved.
After reassessing the club’s historical financial submissions to factor in the undisclosed payments, the Premier League determined that Chelsea would not have violated profitability and sustainability thresholds had disclosures occurred as required. As a result, the authorities chose not to impose a points deduction but instead issued a fine, initially set at £20m but reduced by half due to the club’s proactive cooperation.
| Club | Season Finish (2016-17) | Relevant Incident | Punishment (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | 1st | 74 rule breaches reported; £47m in secret payments (2011-2018) | £10.75m fine, six-point deduction set aside |
Further Sanctions: Academy Breaches
Chelsea also received an additional £750,000 fine in March concerning the registration of academy players between 2019 and 2022, accompanied by an immediate nine-month ban from academy transfers.
