Chelsea may have earned close to £60 million from reaching the FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals, but that financial boost does little to mitigate their ongoing concerns over UEFA Financial Fair Play (FFP) compliance — particularly with regard to player registration for the UEFA Champions League.

The Blues were recently fined €31 million (£26.2 million) for breaching FFP regulations, a penalty that casts a shadow over their ability to register high-profile signings such as Estevão, Andrey Santos, João Pedro, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, and Liam Delap for the 2025–26 Champions League.

As things stand, Chelsea will only be permitted to register these new arrivals if their FFP balance sheet, due for submission on 3 September, shows they are within UEFA’s financial limits.

The List A Conundrum
At the centre of the issue is List A — the official UEFA squad list for European competitions, including the Europa Conference League, submitted by Chelsea in February 2025. Notably, injured duo Roméo Lavia and Wesley Fofana were left out at the time due to long-term fitness concerns.

Now both players are expected to be reintegrated, placing further strain on an already crowded registration list that includes five new signings, with Dário Essugo, Mamadou Sarr, and Mike Penders also under consideration for inclusion.

UEFA’s FFP rules account for both transfer fees and player wages when assessing a club’s financial health. Currently, Chelsea have ten players awaiting European registration, significantly inflating their projected expenditure for the forthcoming campaign.

For context, Liam Delap’s reported £30 million transfer fee is amortised over a five-year contract — resulting in £6 million added to Chelsea’s 2025–26 financial books. João Pedro’s deal is believed to exceed £50 million, while Bynoe-Gittens arrived from Dortmund for an estimated £48.5 million.

Outgoing Transfers Crucial for FFP Compliance
To ensure FFP compliance and squad registration eligibility, Chelsea will need to offload players in the coming weeks.

The likes of João Félix, Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Renato Veiga, and Axel Disasi were not included in the previous List A submission, meaning they can still be registered — but only if space becomes available via departures.

Further potential exits include Christopher Nkunku, Trevoh Chalobah, and Noni Madueke, all of whom have reportedly been made available for transfer this summer.

Despite the financial balancing act required, club sources maintain that Chelsea are “not particularly worried” about the situation. As reported by The Times, the club's executives remain open to further signings — although all incoming deals are contingent on player sales being completed first.

One reported target is West Ham's Mohammed Kudus, who could be brought in should Madueke depart. However, as reiterated in the report:

“Any new signings are entirely dependent on sales being completed first.”