Chelsea's new owner Todd Boehly has made clear his stance on spending on new players as he embarks on his first transfer window with the Blues.
During Roman Abramovich's time as owner, the London side were regularly among the biggest spenders in the Premier League. However, after Boehly's group completed their takeover, with the deal formally announced in May, some supporters were left wondering whether the days of big-money deals will continue.
The final season of Abramovich's 19-year tenure saw Chelsea finish third, some distance behind Manchester City and Liverpool. As the Blues attempt to close the gap on last season's top two, Boehly has given some hints about what might be in store.
"Financial Fair Play is starting to get some teeth and that will limit ability to acquire players at any price," Boehly said at the SuperReturn International conference in Berlin," as reported by Reuters.
"UEFA takes it seriously and will continue to take it seriously. (More teeth) means financial penalties and disqualification from sporting competitions."
Chelsea have already dealt with one transfer ban in their recent past for matters unrelated to Financial Fair Play regulations. However, they spent big in the last summer transfer window under Abramovich, breaking their transfer record to bring Romelu Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge.
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Chelsea have been linked with a number of potential signings in what could be a busy summer, but have already lost two of their regulars from last season. Antonio Rudiger has confirmed he will be a Real Madrid player next season, while Andreas Christensen is also La Liga-bound after agreeing a move to Barcelona.
Three more senior players are also on their way out with their contracts expiring. However, none of Danny Drinkwater, Charly Musonda and Jake Clarke-Salter earned competitive minutes for the Blues last season.
Lukaku has also been linked with a move away, with an exit for the Belgian potentially helping free up funds for some summer arrivals. Boehly is reportedly prepared to let the record signing move on, though Chelsea are likely to suffer a loss on their £97.5m outlay after the 29-year-old managed just eight league goals last season - his lowest return in the last decade.
However, according to The Athletic, Boehly is yet to be convinced by the prospect of a loan departure for Lukaku. There reportedly remains an issue between Lukaku and manager Thomas Tuchel, however, with the former PSG boss happy to leave out the former Manchester United striker on a number of occasions last season.
Boehly also spoke about the possibility of bringing an "American mentality" into English football. The 48-year-old is co-owner of baseball franchise the Los Angeles Dodgers and WNBA outfit Los Angeles Sparks.
"We think the global footprint of this sport is really undeveloped," Boehly continued, per Reuters' report. "There are four billion fans of European football. There are 170 million fans of NFL. Global club football is a fraction of the NFL media money.
"We are also going to be thinking about, how do we get more revenues for the players? "If you look at LeBron James, for example, he has a whole business and a whole team dedicated to what's not on the court. So I think there is opportunity to capture some of that American mentality into English sports and really develop them."
