Christian Purslow predicts whether Clearlake will build new Chelsea stadium in next five years
It has been 121 years since Chelsea moved into Stamford Bridge. While their rivals continue to build new stadiums or increase the capacity of their current ones, Chelsea remain at the Bridge.
It has emerged this week that the three co-owners led by Todd Boehly are looking to share their stake of around 38% in Chelsea. Boehly and Mark Walter are looking to sell their separate 12.7% Chelsea stakes.
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Clearlake, chaired by Behdad Eghbali, currently own just under 62% of Chelsea. It is believed that Walter and Boehly are looking to sell, with Walter cashing in on his assets. Hansjorg Wyss owns the other 12.7%.
The American is under investigation across the pond for certain payments made, and is looking to cash in on some of his assets to pay off loans to insurance companies. Last week, he sold the Los Angeles Lakers.
Can Chelsea make a profit without investing in a new stadium?
With Boehly, Wyss and Walter looking to sell their stake, Chelsea will be solely owned by Clearlake. Eghbali will be calling the shots, and one big decision he has to make is a new stadium at Chelsea.
Tottenham have built a new one, Leeds are increasing their capacity, Liverpool already have done. Yet, Chelsea remain at the Bridge and have done now for more than 120 years, since moving there in 1905.
So, will Chelsea increase the capacity of Stamford Bridge or will they build a new stadium? Chelsea’s former head of global commercial activities, Christian Purslow, does not see a new stadium by 2031.
Discussing Chelsea’s ownership on The Football Boardroom podcast alongside journalist Henry Winter, former Liverpool and Villa chief Purslow was asked by Winter: “Do you think it will be built?”
He replied: “Certainly not. I can’t see Chelsea playing anywhere else in the next five years. If you take the timeline that they’re [Clearlake] already here for four years, and I can’t see a stadium in the next five.
“Then they will be here for nine years, still at Stamford Bridge. My analysis is, as a deal, they will not have succeeded in implementing a key plank of the growth thesis which is a change of stadium,” Purslow said.
“Which is where they hoped they would be when they bought the club in 2022. By the way, Roman Abramovich owned the club for 18 years. He had unlimited wealth, ambition, an army of capable people.
“He didn’t get it sorted. It’s not an intractable problem, but it’s not far off it. So far, it has defeated Boehly and Eghbali. Do I think Clearlake make a profit on the original investment and exit in the near future?
“Yes I do. Getting Chelsea back on track in footballing terms will do that. Chelsea performing well will allow them to argue it’s worth £5bn or £6bn. It’s more important than doubling the stadium capacity.”
How much is Chelsea worth right now, according to Forbes?
The consortium led by Boehly bought Chelsea for a fee of ÂŁ2.5bn from Roman Abramovich back in 2022. A fee which was reduced somewhat to cover increasing fines for transfer activity since ruled irregular.
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Earlier this month, a third of Liverpool was bought at a valuation of $7m [ÂŁ5.1bn]. The Reds have a bigger stadium but ultimately, there is plenty to compare between the Reds and Chelsea at the moment.
Forbes published an article in May, valuing Chelsea at around $4.2bn [ÂŁ3.1bn]. If Chelsea can get back in the Champions League, that valuation will increase. Without the stadium, success on the pitch is crucial.
If Wyss, Boehly and Walter sold their stake at the current valuation, they would win a small profit – in the grand scheme of things – based on their initial stake. But they would rather sell when Chelsea are thriving.
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