Chelsea F.C. have been given a record fine for secretive rule-breaching payments revealed as part of ICIJ’s Cyprus Confidential investigation — but has avoided a points deduction.

The London-based Premier League club was fined 10.75 million pounds (about $14 million), handed a suspended ban from signing first-team players and given an immediate nine-month academy transfer ban.

The suspended transfer ban lasts for two years and will be triggered if there are further breaches.

The Premier League imposed the penalties over breaches of financial rules during Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich’s ownership.

“All sanctions will take effect immediately with the club also paying the full costs of the League’s investigation and disciplinary processes,” the Premier League said.

The sanctions followed revelations of secret payments revealed by ICIJ partners The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and The Guardian.

Those revelations were made as part of  ICIJ and Paper Trail Media’s Cyprus Confidential investigation that examined Abramovich’s dealings in Cyprus, a notorious secrecy hub used by the oligarch to manage his fortune.

https://www.icij.org/investigations/russia-archive/leak-reveals-majority-interest-in-roman-abramovichs-nearly-1-billion-art-collection-was-transferred-to-his-ex-wife-ahead-of-sanctions/

Art Leak reveals majority interest in Roman Abramovich’s nearly $1 billion art collection was transferred to his ex-wife ahead of sanctions Sep 22, 2023

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National governments must take stronger measures to stop arms trafficking and allow legal remedies for their harms, according to a newly issued opinion by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, a long awaited finding that comes as Mexico is pressuring the United States to stop the illegal flow of guns across its borders.

The court, which is based in Costa Rica and has jurisdiction over some members of the Organization of American States, said in an advisory issued last week that governments have a “duty of due diligence regarding activities that may result in illicit trafficking of firearms.”

That duty, it found, includes monitoring and supervising firearms manufacturers to ensure their products are not enabling human rights violations, and providing effective judicial remedies for those whose rights have been violated. The “indiscriminate availability of firearms”, the court wrote, threatens the “right to life” and the “right to personal integrity” of vulnerable groups, including women and children.

U.S. federal law protects firearms manufacturers from most legal liability for crimes committed with their products.

“States must undertake risk assessments to anticipate the possibility that imports or exports of arms may lead to negative consequences such as undermining peace and security, as well as the commission or facilitation of serious violations of international humanitarian law or international human rights law, particularly when affecting vulnerable populations,” the court wrote.

https://www.icij.org/news/2026/03/lawmakers-seek-to-stop-sales-to-the-public-of-ammunition-made-at-u-s-army-plant/

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INVESTIGATION Mexican cartels overpower police with ammunition made for the US military Feb 07, 2026

https://www.icij.org/news/2025/11/ar-15-ammunition-at-a-crime-scene-good-odds-this-us-army-plant-made-it/

United States AR-15 ammunition at a crime scene? Good odds this US Army plant made it. Nov 06, 2025

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