FA fine Chelsea for Villa bottle throwing incident

After an unidentified member of the club’s staff threw a bottle at Aston Villa’s bench at the end of a December Premier League game, Chelsea were fined £150,000.

After two late Ollie Watkins goals gave the away team a 2-1 lead, a plastic water bottle was thrown in the stands following Villa’s comeback victory at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea accepted a charge of breaking FA Rule E20.1 because they “failed to ensure its players and/or other relevant personnel around the technical area did not act improperly, provocatively, or abusively after the final whistle.”

Following a hearing on January 19th, an independent FA regulatory commission handed Chelsea the fine.

The FA was given footage of the bottle being thrown, and the “act was dangerous,” according to the commission’s written justifications, which could have “provoked a reaction” from Villa’s staff.

However, it was noted that neither the FA nor Chelsea Football Club were able to identify the specific person responsible for the bottle’s location following investigations.