Can they afford it?! Chelsea bizarrely terminate sponsorship after less than a year despite fight to meet Financial Fair Play spending rules

Chelsea have terminated a sponsorship deal with Oman Air, per the Daily Telegraph, in bizarre circumstances. The club announced the partnership, which is worth around £2 million ($2.5m) to the club over the course of a year. The deal was announced in July but the newspaper reports that the deal has now been terminated, despite there being no reason put forward.

Chelsea are now without various sponsors for next season; they do not have a front-of-shirt sponsor, nor a sleeve or airline sponsor, with the latter two being increasingly lucrative for various clubs across the Premier League. The Telegraph quotes a source claiming that the issue came from Oman Air's side, rather than Chelsea's, but there has been no announcement from either party.

The deal is not worth a fortune to the Blues but they need to comply with FFP rules after announcing a £90m ($115m) pre-tax loss in the 12-month period up to June 30. Rivals believe they must raise £100m ($128m) through player sales to comply this summer; if they are unable to, they may face a points deduction.

Chelsea have been in dire form this season and may struggle to meet FFP regulations if they fail to qualify for Europe. They are currently 11th with 36 points and sit a staggering 19 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa, making Champions League football an almost impossible proposition for next season.

Chelsea are next in action on Monday evening against Newcastle. They then face Leicester in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, with silverware still available for Mauricio Pochettino and his side.