Inside Chelsea’s power axis: Rumours of a rift between Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali – and what it all means for their transfer plans

Rumors of a split in Chelsea’s American power base – strongly denied by club officials – have been circulating at Stamford Bridge for months.

And today’s Mail Sport exclusive, which reveals Chelsea WILL appoint a new chairman to replace the under-fire Todd Boehly in 2027, will do little to dislodge them.

The reality, however, is that – thanks to the extraordinary agreement between Boehly and majority stakeholders Clearlake Capital – a move was always going to be likely five years after the acquisition.

When the £4.25 billion deal to buy the club from Roman Abramovich was sealed, Boehly and fellow investors Hansjorg Wyss and Mark Walter took a 38.5 percent stake.

Clearlake, the California private equity firm led by fellow owners Behdad Eghbali and Jose Feliciano, took 61.5 percent.

All parties agreed to a clause allowing the chairman to be changed every five years. But the reason the minority investors “went first” when it came to an arrangement is due to the way the agreement was structured.

It can be revealed that Boehly’s group owns so-called ‘common shares’, while Clearlake has ‘preferred shares’, which provide more protection against any financial downside.

This allowed Boehly and co to choose the first chairman and Boehly himself – who became interim sports director in a hectic first season – took over and became the face of the takeover.

Since then, the minority stakeholder has had to shoulder most of the significant flak directed at the group. For example, it was Boehly, and not the others, who was mocked in a Fantasy Football skit, and it was Boehly’s name that was chanted by angry supporters (along with an expletive) during a 2-2 draw against Brentford earlier this month.

Against this backdrop, the revelation that a new chairman – possibly Eghbali or Feliciano and certainly a Clearlake appointment – ​​will arrive in three years’ time could be seen as a sign of unhappiness and a desire to move in a different direction.

However, it is very unlikely that this will be the case. Although Boehly was no longer chairman, he would retain his stake. He would also have signed with Eghbali for all major decisions, as has been the case since the deal was struck. If he wanted to, he could return to the role in 2032.

After a hectic introduction, which included the firing of Thomas Tuchel and the hiring and firing of Graham Potter, Boehly has taken more of a back seat this season. As a result, there is a sense of irony that such a move coincided with the barrage of criticism directed at him.

The 2027 switch may paint a more complex picture of the dynamics involved, but insiders say it would be wrong to see it as a vote of no confidence or an indicator of a failing relationship, but rather an inevitability, thanks to terms of the deal.

Although Eghbali has had the lower public profile of the pair, he has been heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the club and has also been spotted at Stamford Bridge more often than Boehly this season.

Both have reason to feel hurt by stinging attacks from an angry fanbase who have recently spotted stickers depicting themselves and Feliciano as clowns on the concourse of at least one Stamford Bridge stand.

As Mail Sport columnist and former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan pointed out, Chelsea have been to the final, are in the semi-finals and are not yet out of the running for a place in Europe. They currently sit in eleventh place, but are five points behind West Ham in seventh place with two games remaining.

Although each club plays by the same rules, they have also had bad luck with injuries to key players. As many as nine first team players are currently on the sidelines. Long-term absentees such as Reece James and Wesley Fofana have had an impact, while Romeo Lavia, signed from Southampton for £58 million this summer, has made just one appearance and has now been ruled out for the rest of the season.

The group admits to making mistakes, but the fact remains that they spent £1 billion of their own money. These aren’t the Glazers. No dividends have been received and no buyout has been made against the club. The goal will ultimately be to make money, but that will only happen if Chelsea becomes the Chelsea they want it to be.

Boehly is rumored to be taking a long-term approach and Eghbali and Feliciano are under pressure from investors to deliver faster returns. However, those close to Clearlake say this is not the case and insist they are also in west London for the long term.

There has also been talk lately about lowering expectations. But insiders say the co-owners are baffled by such a suggestion. Regardless of who is chairman, the aim remains for Chelsea to win games, play in the Champions League and bring trophies to Stamford Bridge.

Apart from the expensively assembled squad, enormous resources have been put into recruitment. Committed spending on data, scouting, sports science and performance will be almost ten times what it was during Roman Abramovich’s reign.

It is expected that the priorities and strategy will remain broadly the same in 2027. Recruitment will primarily focus on bringing the best young talent in the world to West London.

The view is that the hard work has been done and that the many appointments to top management will be well underway. Success on the field should now follow. It’s a vision that the club’s fanbase hopes will become a reality.

A lot of work has also gone into the commercial operation of Chelsea. Under Abramovich, the view was that the oligarch would write a check every month to cover the debts and everything would be fine.

Football has changed since then, thanks in no small part to profit and sustainability rules. Chelsea are dramatically underperforming when it comes to off-field revenue generation. Now goals have been set and the aim is to quickly increase their commercial position among the planet’s top clubs.

Three years is a long time. All parties will hope that Chelsea will be in a better position in 2027 when the new chairman steps into the role. Indeed, the post can be seen as less of a poisoned chalice and the “Three Ring Circus” label – which fans used on those stickers – may well have left town.