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Chelsea Pitch Owners plc is a nonprofit organisation which is part of Chelsea Football Club, tasked with the upkeep of the stadium. It owns both the freehold of the Stamford Bridge stadium and the naming rights of Chelsea Football Club.
Chelsea suffered serious financial troubles during the 1970s and 1980s following a large-scale attempt to renovate Stamford Bridge. The financial crisis and a subsequent change of ownership at the club culminated in the sale of the club's freehold to property developers Marler Estates (and subsequently Cabra Estates). The move almost saw Chelsea lose the stadium. [1]
The future of the stadium (and hence the club) was only secured in 1992, when the property developers were bankrupted by a market crash, allowing the then-chair Ken Bates to do a deal with their bankers and to regain control of the stadium for the football club. Following this, Chelsea Pitch Owners was created, and in 1997 it purchased the Stamford Bridge freehold, the turnstiles, the pitch and the Chelsea FC name with the aid of a non-recourse loan of £10 million [1] from Chelsea Village plc, the parent company of the club. [1] [2] CPO in turn granted the club a 199-year lease on Stamford Bridge at a peppercorn rent. [1]
In granting control of the freehold to Chelsea Pitch Owners, the intention was to ensure that Stamford Bridge could never again be sold to property developers. Irrespective of how many shares are owned by an individual, voting rights are limited to 100 per shareholder to prevent any one person or organisation gaining control of CPO. [3]
CPO also owns the name Chelsea Football Club Ltd, which is licensed back to the club on condition that the first team play their home matches at Stamford Bridge. This means that should Chelsea move to another stadium in the future, they would not be able to use the name Chelsea Football Club without permission from 75% of CPO shareholders. [4]
The company is a non-profit organisation and is not listed on any stock exchange. [1] [3] Its purpose is to raise the money needed to pay off the loan and then lease the freehold back to the club, on the strictly-defined proviso that the ground may only be used for football purposes. Fans are encouraged to purchase shares to secure the club's future. As of 2023, around 23,000 CPO shares have been sold, and approximately £2 million of the debt has been paid off. [5] Former club captain John Terry is the current president of the CPO. [6]
On 3 October 2011 Chelsea Football Club made a proposal to buy back the freehold land (owned by CPO) on which the football stadium at Stamford Bridge sits, which would pave the way for a move to a new ground. Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck, said: "Chelsea should always be grateful to those who invested in CPO. We know only too well how close the club came to losing our home prior to the formation of CPO, but that threat has now gone under Mr Abramovich's ownership and with the CPO structure in place we cannot plan with certainty for the future. I hope all shareholders vote in favour of the proposal."
Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay said: "I am sure all Chelsea fans have enjoyed the football and success we have witnessed at Stamford Bridge since 2003 and Chelsea Football Club and Mr Abramovich are determined to ensure that the club continues to compete at the highest level of world football." He added: "We continue to look at options for expanding the Bridge and I should be clear that we have not identified a site for a new stadium elsewhere." [7]
The proposal was brought in a general CPO meeting on 27 October 2011 but failed to pass as only 61.6% of the total votes were cast in favour of the proposal, below the 75% minimum requirement. [8]
In May 2012, Chelsea Football Club confirmed that they had lodged a bid to buy the site of Battersea Power Station, with the possibility of the club relocating to a 60,000-seater capacity stadium. [9] Chairman Bruce Buck did concede that there were "a number of hurdles to jump," including "winning the support of our fans, the CPO shareholders and local Wandsworth residents [near the Battersea site], as well as securing the approval of Wandsworth Council, the Greater London Authority and heritage authorities." [10] The Battersea Power Station proposal did not proceed, with the site redeveloped for residential and commercial uses. [11]
In December 2015 Chelsea announced intention to build a 60,000-seater stadium at Stamford Bridge to a design by Herzog & de Meuron. [12] Planning permission was achieved in 2017, [13] In May 2018, the club announced suspension of the rebuild due to the "unfavourable investment climate." [14]
In July 2022 it was reported that the club's new owner Todd Boehly had appointed American architect Janet Marie Smith to oversee the renovation of the stadium. [15]
Chelsea Football Club is a professional football club based in Fulham, West London, England. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1905, the team play their home games at Stamford Bridge. The club won their first major honour, the League championship, in 1955. They won the FA Cup for the first time in 1970, won their first European honour, the Cup Winners' Cup, in 1971, and became the third English club to win the Club World Cup in 2022.
Roman Arkadyevich Abramovich is a Russian oligarch and politician. He is the former owner of Chelsea, a Premier League football club in London, England, and is the primary owner of the private investment company Millhouse. He is sanctioned by the US, EU, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ukraine. He has Russian, Israeli and Portuguese citizenship.
Stamford Bridge is a football stadium in Fulham, adjacent to the borough of Chelsea in West London. It is the home of Premier League club Chelsea. With a capacity of 40,173, it is the ninth largest venue of the 2024–25 Premier League season and the eleventh largest football stadium in England.
Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea and was opened in 1858.
Bruce Michael Buck is an American lawyer and founding managing partner of the London office of law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He was also the Chairman of Chelsea Football Club from 2004 until 2022. His practice areas are European mergers and acquisitions, project finance and capital markets.
Kenneth William Bates is a British businessman, football executive and hotelier. He was involved in the development of Wembley Stadium and is a former owner and chairman of football clubs Chelsea and Leeds United.
Joseph Brian Mears was the chairman of Chelsea Football Club. He was the son of Joe Mears, also a chairman of Chelsea, and grandson of Joseph Mears, co-founder of the club. He was born in Richmond, Surrey, and educated at Malvern College. In 1950 he emigrated to Canada and began working life in a seed factory. He returned to the United Kingdom shortly afterwards and did his national service as a radio operator in the Royal Air Force.
The Arsenal F.C.–Chelsea F.C. rivalry is a rivalry between London-based professional association football clubs Arsenal Football Club and Chelsea Football Club. Arsenal play their home games at the Emirates Stadium, while Chelsea play their home games at Stamford Bridge.
The 2010 FA Cup final was the 129th final of the FA Cup, the world's oldest domestic football cup competition. The match took place on 15 May 2010, at Wembley Stadium, London, in front of a crowd of over 88,000 and a British television audience of over 5 million. The match was contested between the two most recent FA Cup winners, Chelsea and Portsmouth (2008), and was refereed by Chris Foy from Merseyside. Chelsea won 1–0.
The rivalry between Chelsea and Leeds United is a football rivalry between London-based club Chelsea and Yorkshire-based Leeds United. The rivalry first emerged in the 1960s after a series of fiercely contested and controversial matches, when the two clubs were frequently involved in the pursuit of domestic and European honours culminating in the 1970 FA Cup final, which is regarded as one of the most physical matches in English football history.
Todd Boehly is an American businessman. He is the co-founder, chairman, chief executive officer and controlling member of Eldridge Industries, a holding company headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut. He is also the interim CEO of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and co-controlling owner and chairman of Premier League football club Chelsea, and co-owner of Ligue 1 football club Strasbourg under BlueCo. As of 2024, Forbes estimates his net worth at US$8.5 billion.
The 2014–15 season was Chelsea Football Club's 101st competitive season, 26th consecutive season in the top flight of English football, 23rd consecutive season in the Premier League, and 109th year in existence as a football club. In addition to the domestic league, Chelsea participated in the UEFA Champions League after qualifying directly for the group stage by finishing third in the league last season. The club secured its fourth Premier League title by beating Crystal Palace on 3 May 2015.
The Chelsea F.C.–Tottenham Hotspur F.C. rivalry is a rivalry between London-based professional association football clubs Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea play their home games at Stamford Bridge, while Tottenham Hotspur play their home games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. As of May 2024, 177 games have been played between the two teams, 79 of which were won by Chelsea and 55 by Spurs.
The 2021–22 season was Chelsea Football Club's 116th year in existence and 33rd consecutive season in the top flight of English football. In addition to the domestic league, Chelsea participated in this season's editions of the FA Cup, EFL Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. The season covered the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.
The 2022–23 season was Chelsea Football Club's 117th year in existence and 34th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. In addition to the domestic league, Chelsea participated in this season's editions of the FA Cup, EFL Cup and UEFA Champions League.
This article documents the history of Chelsea Football Club, an English association football team based in Fulham, West London. For a general overview of the club, see Chelsea F.C.
This article documents the history of Chelsea Football Club, an English association football team based in Fulham, West London. For a general overview of the club, see Chelsea F.C.
This article documents the history of Chelsea Football Club, an English association football team based in Fulham, West London. For a general overview of the club, see Chelsea F.C.
This article documents the history of Chelsea Football Club, an English association football team based in Fulham, West London. For a general overview of the club, see Chelsea F.C.
BlueCo is a consortium led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter, and Hansjörg Wyss. The group was formed as the investment vehicle for the takeover of Premier League football club Chelsea F.C. in 2022. Its name is derived from the home colour of Chelsea, its flagship football club, and acts as the club's parent company.
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