Chelsea takeover: How Boehly consortium will transform the Blues

FT Desk

• Updated: 30 May 2022 10:39 CDT
• 4 min read

Chelsea have new owners in the form of a consortium fronted by Todd Boehly and backed by Clearlake Capital.

After overcoming numerous hurdles, the deal was finally made official on 30 May, opening a new chapter in the history of the club after a number of turbulent months in which the very survival of the Stamford Bridge outfit appeared to be threatened at times.

The news that Roman Abramovich's assets plunged the Blues into a crisis, yet they have emerged with new owners and, apparently, a secure future.

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"New joint control owners are committed to growth and building on the tradition of unparalleled football excellence," the club stated in the release that confirmed the success of the takeover, pointing to their strong history under their former owner.

Indeed, Chelsea became a footballing force under Abramovich, winning five Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues after the Russian oligarch acquired the club in the summer of 2003.

Boehly owns the LA Lakers and the LA Dodgers, and while his pockets would seem to be sufficiently deep to keep Chelsea at the top, there will be some changes at Stamford Bridge.

More intelligent transfer spending

While Boehly's net worth is estimated to be $4.4bn (€4.13bn), he is not planning to pump $2bn of his personal fortune into the club - as Abramovich did in his nearly 20 years at the helm.

Instead, Chelsea will be run for profit, with a buy low, sell high philosophy. The club have been moving in that direction, but last summer's €114m acquisition of Romelu Lukaku - a player at odds with coach Thomas Tuchel's preferred system - suggests there is still some way to go.

Contracts bolted down in advance

While Lukaku came in for big money and subsequently mustered eight Premier League goals in 26 outings, star performers like Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen are set to leave on free transfers to Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively.

That is something Boehly and Co. do not want to see happen with the club's young stars who have broken into the first-team with increasing regularity in recent seasons - Mason Mount and Reece James first among them.

Mount and James are currently on less than £100,000 per week, with players like Saul Niguez and Kepa Arrizabalaga boasting half the minutes but twice the salary, and Boehly does not want to see them leave in a similar fashion to Rudiger and Christensen.

Expanding Stamford Bridge

With a capacity of 40,834, Chelsea's stadium is smaller than each of the sides that joined them in the top six in the Premier League this season, after Manchester United (74,140), Tottenham Hotspur (62,850), Arsenal (60,704), Manchester City (53,400) and Liverpool (53,394).

Boehly attempted to buy Chelsea in 2019, and when his bid was rejected by Abramovich, so too was an ambitious £1bn (€1.17bn) redevelopment of Stamford Bridge. Boehly's group have produced another comprehensive redevelopment proposal and are understood to have spoken to prominent architects such as Jane Marie Smith and David Hickey.

Other changes

Further investment in the women's game is to be expected with all bidders on Chelsea asked to commit at least £1bn towards men's, women's and academy operations.

Some notable Chelsea fans are also expected to be added to the board, such as Lord Finkelstein and UK-based American marketing executive Barbara Charone.