Why Chelsea Face Harsher Punishment Than West Ham for Brawl Sparked by Hammers

Adama Traoré shoved Marc Cucurella off the pitch and Jean-Clair Todibo throttled João Pedro but Chelsea still earned a larger fine than West Ham.

Jean-Clair Todibo (left) lost his cool. | Adrian DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images

The English Football Association (FA) have dished out their punishments for the mass brawl between Chelsea and West Ham United players during January’s fiery Premier League derby.

Despite only walking away from the incident with one yellow card, while Hammers centre back Jean-Clair Todibo was sent off for throttling João Pedro, it was Chelsea who found themselves fined £325,000 ($440,000) compared to the £300,000 which West Ham have to pay.

Both clubs were found guilty of the same offence—“failing to ensure its players didn’t behave in an improper and/or provocative and/or violent way at this time”—yet Chelsea’s numerous past indiscretions have counted against them on this occasion. The mischievous Marc Cucurella also found himself name-checked in the FA’s official report.

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What Happened in Chelsea vs. West Ham?

Jean-Clair Todibo (left) throttled João Pedro when Chelsea defeated West Ham in January. | Adrian DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images

London derbies between Chelsea and West Ham are fractious affairs at the best of times but tempers became particularly frayed after the visitors gave up a 2–0 lead to trail 3–2 heading into stoppage time in west London. With only a few minutes remaining, Hammers substitute Adama Traoré battled with Cucurella for a corner, at which point chaos ensued:

• The Chelsea fullback was left scuttling along the turf on his hands and knees in an attempt to disrupt Traoré, who reacted by tossing Cucurella off the side of pitch.
• João Pedro defended his teammate by shoving Traoré off the touchline. It was a decision he immediately regretted.
• Traoré pirouetted around to face Pedro, who hurriedly back-pedalled but couldn’t retreat quickly enough to escape a light shove from the hulking winger.
• It was at this point that Todibo came steaming in.
• The French centre back didn’t make clean contact initially but soon got a firm grip of Pedro’s neck.
• At the same time, Wesley Fofana and Traoré were busying themselves by squaring up, inspiring a cluster of blue and claret shirts around both separate scuffles.
• With the help of both goalkeepers and frantic whistling from referee Anthony Taylor the mass brawl eventually dissipated.

Taylor booked Pedro and Traoré before a consultation with the pitch-side monitor led to Todibo’s inevitable dismissal.

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Why Chelsea Were Fined More Than West Ham

Marc Cucurella (left) was name-checked in the FA’s report. | Visionhaus/Getty Images

Both Chelsea and West Ham accepted the FA’s charge early and demonstrated some signs of contrition, which saw their provisional fines each reduced by £75,000. The independent regulatory commission which ruled on the punishment did not accept the framing of Chelsea as victims.

“This was a typical case where both sides claim that without the actions of the other, the incident would not have occurred,” the report sniffily read.

West Ham’s Traoré was the initial antagonist but Cucurella was not spared from scrutiny. “It was not accepted that Mr. Cucurella was wholly without fault,” the report found. “He was aware of his actions after conceding the corner kick and returning to his feet. He sought to invite a reaction from Mr. Traoré.”

Chelsea were also punished for riling up the stands at Stamford Bridge. “Furthermore, the Commission noted that three of the Chelsea players were in some way seeking to incite the crowd during and towards the end of the incident. There is no justification for this behaviour, irrespective of what had happened during the course of the game or within the mass confrontation itself.”

West Ham’s guilt was easier to identify: with Traoré and Todibo in the spotlight. However, the ultimate valuation of the fines came down to the number of past discretions.

This was Chelsea’s sixth sanction in the last five seasons and their third this term alone. West Ham, by contrast, had only committed three prior offences since the summer of 2021. This dire disciplinary record was the definitive factor in their swollen punishment.

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Chelsea Fines

Date	Match	Fine
Aug. 28, 2021	Liverpool (A)	£25,000
Oct. 6, 2024	Nottingham Forest (H)	£40,000
Dec. 30, 2024	Ipswich (A)	£40,000
Dec. 27, 2025	Aston Villa (H)	£150,000
Jan. 7, 2026	Fulham (A)	£20,000
Jan. 31, 2026	West Ham (H)	£325,000

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