Chelsea are facing a nightmare dilemma over plans for a new stadium.
Blues chiefs believe they have only two options: stay away from Stamford Bridge for six years while it is revamped, or pay the odds to buy land nearby for a new stadium. according to The Sun.
There is also frustration at the lack of progress among the new owners.
Chelsea’s plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge appeared to take a major step forward last October after Stoll Charity trustees granted permission to sell the site containing military veterans’ homes to the club.
The £80 million sale of the majority of the Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions site has been contracted and is expected to be completed in early 2024.
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is believed to be pursuing a plan to redevelop Stamford Bridge
There is growing frustration at the lack of progress on a new stadium under the new owners
Chelsea Pitch Owners expect the club to announce their future stadium plans soon
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Chelsea had also considered a possible stadium move to nearby Earl’s Court, but are said to have concentrated efforts on a £2 billion expansion of their existing 40,341 capacity stadium.
CPO board chairman Chris Isitt has issued a statement confirming that they expect the club to make a decision on their stadium plans soon, before warning that a possible rebuild could take up to seven years.
“CPO has not yet been informed of any decision by the club regarding future plans for the stadium,” the statement said. “We believe their decision will be finalized shortly after we have explored all available options.
‘Board members may choose to express their own views on the process, but obviously cannot do so until a proposal is in place and its details can be properly considered.
‘As we understand, although an agreement has been reached to purchase the Stoll site, it will still be some time before the site can be cleared.
‘In addition, a new planning application would be required, even though some of that work was done during the earlier project under Roman Abramovich.
‘Once an application is approved, estimates of the time required for demolition and reconstruction range from four years to as many as seven years, during which time the Club would have to relocate its home games.’
Earlier this month, approval was granted for the sale of the Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions (left) to Chelsea, marking a major step forward in potential redevelopment plans
Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions (left) and Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge (right) are next to each other
The CPO reiterated that any vote on a proposal from the club would be open to the group’s more than 14,000 shareholders, with 75 percent required to agree for the plans to go ahead.
The group added that it will continue to sell shares during the redevelopment process.
Earls Court Development Company has denied there are plans for a football stadium on their site.
“We categorically deny that any discussions are taking place with Chelsea FC regarding a stadium move to the Earls Court site,” the statement said.
‘After many years of consultation with the local community, we have updated our masterplan proposals and will release updated plans in the coming weeks.
‘Our plan will deliver more than 4,000 homes, space for 15,000 jobs, hectares of public space and cultural venues, restaurants and community facilities. There is no football stadium in the Earls Court masterplan.”
Chelsea has faced a number of obstacles in carrying out its massive renovations under former owner Roman Abramovich.
But funds for the rebuild were set aside as part of the club’s £4.25 billion takeover by co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in May 2022.
The Blues face a move of up to six years if they go ahead with the Stamford Bridge renewal
Possible work on the stadium, which would aim to expand its capacity to 60,000 in line with that of the club’s rivals in the Premier League, could see the Blues playing away from Chelsea for more than four years. An expansion would not begin until 2026 at the earliest.
Venues mooted to host the club while renovations are carried out include Wembley, Twickenham and Craven Cottage, where their west London neighbors Fulham play.
It is believed that Boehly has held informal discussions with Fulham’s owner Shahid Khan about the possibility of ground-sharing, but while this was the most convenient move just a mile away, staying at Craven Cottage (25,700 capacity) could see the Blues missing the key. gain.
Should Chelsea’s owners opt for a stand-by renovation, the work could take significantly longer than four to five years. Independent experts call Chelsea’s proposed 2030 end date ‘optimistic’.