Chelsea owner Todd Boehly expects the club will move to a new stadium in the future but conceded it is a ‘really complex’ situation.
The Blues have called Stamford Bridge home since 1877 but despite several renovations over the years, it has a capacity of just 40,341.
Boehly is firmly in favour of moving Chelsea to a new stadium[/caption]
That leaves Chelsea with the 11th-largest football stadium in England, a standing that is not befitting of one of the biggest clubs in the nation let alone the world.
An expansion of Stamford Bridge has previously been mooted but due to its location in west London, the club has ran into serious economic and logistical hurdles.
The stadium is situated in a busy area where there are already plenty of homes and businesses while two train lines run directly along two sides of the ground.
With several speed bumps in the way of expanding Stamford Bridge, it’s why Boehly told Bloomberg Insight he believes a new stadium is the only way forward.
“Inside of London it’s really complex,” Boehly said.
“It’s not like we are building something in a rural environment. We have a lot of constituents to make sure we care about. Certainly the Chelsea fan base is one of them.
“Long term, I think we’re going to build something new, and I think we’ll figure it out.”
Chelsea have previously attempted to move out of Stamford Bridge, but those efforts have proved futile.
Under former owner Roman Abramovich, the Blues tried to buy Battersea Power Station in May 2012 and would build a stadium with the iconic four chimneys.
However, the bid was ultimately rejected as a Malaysian company turned the Grade II listed building into apartments.
Chelsea later unveiled plans to build a new 60,000-seater stadium at Stamford Bridge and had full planning permission from Hammersmith and Fulham Council as well as the Mayor of London in 2017.
Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, who had previously worked on the Allianz Arena in Munich and the Beijing National Stadium, was tasked with designing the rebuild.
However, the club confirmed in 2018 it had ‘put its new stadium project on hold’.
In the interview, Boehly claimed his continued involvement with Chelsea would ultimately hinge on his ambitious plans for a new stadium.
However, the American was also quick to allay any fears there is a divide amongst Chelsea’s ownership group.
talkSPORT reported last September there was tension between Boehly and Clearlake co-founder Behdad Eghbali over the club’s transfer policy, results and lack of progress.
“We have been aligned on what we are trying to do and build,” Boehly said.
“It’s a team that’s young. It’s a team that’s got long contracts. And all these things were new, and to do all these things we have done it’s obviously because we are aligned.
“So if you look at what is actually happening and don’t follow the shiny lights you will see there is core stability and there has been a long-time theme. And I think we are executing on a plan that ultimately will have Chelsea where it belongs. I mean we are sitting top four right now.
“I think the status quo is just fine. We have learned from each other and I think we are going to be able to work it out any which way.
“We have to think about long term what we are trying to accomplish. We have a big stadium development opportunity that we have to flesh out, and I think that’s where we either align or ultimately decide to go our different ways.
“But what has been written and talked about has much more drama than what has actually happened.”
