Chelsea’s plans to move to a new stadium may have to wait until 2042, owner Todd Boehly has revealed.
The issue of a new stadium for the west London club has been a discussion point for some time now, with the English giants’ home of Stamford Bridge arguably falling behind their rivals’.
Stamford Bridge is currently the ninth-largest Premier League venue in terms of capacity at around 41,000 which puts Chelsea over 33,000 seats behind league leaders Manchester United at Old Trafford, and 7,000 behind Championship side Sunderland.
In addition to the deficit in ticket sales the Blues therefore face, there is also the issue of matchday hospitality revenue, something which is growing increasingly important with the stringent Profit and Sustainability Rules that the Premier League is subject to.
There have long been discussions about a new stadium for the Blues, though, and whether that would take the form of a complete re-build, a revamp, or a relocation, with owners seemingly divided.
Boehly told Bloomberg that while plans to improve the stadium had been in place since buying the club, they could take some time to come to fruition.
Todd Boehly has suggested Chelsea fans may have to wait until 2042 for their new stadium
Stamford Bridge currently has the ninth-largest capacity across the whole Premier League
‘It’s years [until plans come to fruition] in the making,’ the Blues chief, who co-owns the club with Clearlake Capital, admitted.
‘When we originally bought the club we agreed initially that we had 15 or 20 years to figure this out but it is a big project in a really interesting city like London where there’s a lot of constituencies that have an opinion.
‘Obviously the number one constituency for us is our fan base and what’s going to be the best for Chelsea.
‘I think everyone recognises that a club as big as Chelsea should have a stadium that reflects the size of the club and ultimately that’s going to be a strategic advantage.’
Speaking at the Milken Institute Global Conference he also revealed that talks over the club’s stadium would re-open at the end of the season.
The Blues are currently looking to become the first team to win all three European trophies, and have one foot in the Conference League final after beating Djurgarden 4-1 in the first leg of the semi-finals.
They also hope to return to the Champions League after a strong first season under Enzo Maresca, who currently has them fifth with three games left to play.
As one of the biggest outfits in the country in the last 20 years, though, London Mayor Sadiq Khan earlier this year claimed they had become ‘victims of their success’ when discussing Stamford Bridge.
Improvements to the stadium – or even a relocation and rebuild – have long been discussed
‘My message to Chelsea is come and speak to us in relation to what you want to do,’ Khan told The Times.
‘Chelsea are the victims of their success, and Stamford Bridge is now too small for them. After all, this is a team that has twice won the Champions League.
‘We work closely with all seven of our Premier League clubs but I’m sure Chelsea look with some envy at the stadiums some of their rivals in London have.
‘We’re really keen to make sure that Chelsea, as we are with all our clubs, continue to flourish and thrive, so we’re open to talking to Chelsea about what plans they have.
‘At the moment they’ve not approached us. But we’re here.’
