Barcelona and Chelsea are reportedly facing the prospect of punishment from UEFA over alleged financial breaches.
The La Liga and Premier League giants have each enjoyed a productive 2024-25, the former completing a domestic treble and latter lifting the Conference League trophy.
Both teams will be participating in next season's Champions League, Barcelona synonymous with the competition and two-time winners Chelsea returning for the first time since 2023.
However, as per The Times, they have each breached UEFA regulations ahead of the 2025-26 campaign and face punishment.
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What rules have been broken?
Barcelona, Chelsea, as well as Aston Villa, are said to be in line to be hit with sanctions on the back of breaking the relevant financial rules.
In the case of Chelsea and Aston Villa, they are first-time offenders in relation to this rule and are in line to be hit with a fine.
Discussions have reportedly already been held with UEFA's Club Financial Control Board (CFCB) to determine a financial settlement and, presumably, a profit/loss margin that they must abide by in 12 months time.
There is also the possibility of being marginally restricted when it comes to naming players in their respective squads for European competition next season.
However, Barcelona's perilous financial situation has been well-documented for some time, and they are not first-time offenders in the eyes of UEFA having been fined £420,000 for wrongly reporting profits in October.
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What punishment could Barcelona face?
As such, it is suggested that a points deduction could be enforced on Barcelona for the League Phase of next season's Champions League.
That would be a step up to seeing their squad number allocation reduced by UEFA, although Barcelona would not necessarily be hampered by that rule if it reflects the amount of players that can be named on their 'A' list.
Hansi Flick would, theoretically, have the option of calling upon the La Masia Academy on the 'B' list should he be required to.
Barcelona's alleged breach stems from the sale of a percentage of their broadcasting rights not counting towards their profits in line with UEFA regulations.
Meanwhile, Chelsea have seemingly failed to comply with the regulations due to the £220m sale of their women's team not being relevant in this instance.
Darren Plant
