New Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is considering moving Chelsea from Stamford Bridge to Earls Court as the club’s new home ground.
The idea to move the Blues’ home ground from Stamford Bridge to Earls Court was birthed in 2013 under former owner Roman Abramovich.
The plan was abandoned after Hammersmith and Fulham Council kicked against it.
Now, new Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is again en route to reawaken and bring it to reality.
As of the time of filing this report, Todd Boehly has reportedly proceeded with the plan and is taking sharp steps to make it happen as soon as possible.
Earls Court was reportedly sold to developers at the sum of £425million in 2019 but is still undeveloped since the purchase.
A development company – Earls Court Development company – is ready to publish a draft of the future development master plan of the site.
As such, the development remains in early stages, and no planning applications have been submitted.
According to reports, the development masterplan for Earls Court as drafted by the Earls Court Development Company was set to take place in winter.
However, provisions were not made for the building of Chelsea stadium, although that cannot be ruled out due to the recent interest of new Chelsea owner, Todd Boehly.
The American investor has even gone ahead to set up a committee to oversee the whole process of the relocation.
Sources close to the developers have confirmed a Chelsea stadium in Earls Court was “not on the cards, but not impossible. Things can change.”
The Premier League club is reportedly juggling a range of options on the planned relocation, such as stand-by-stand Stamford Bridge rebuild, total demolition, and identifying potential new sites.
A hurdle to cross
Relocating to the Earls’s Court may not be as smooth as the new Chelsea owner assumes. There are some clauses and hurdles to overcome.
First, the club will have to seek the permission of Chelsea Pitch Owners (CPO) – a shareholder group owning the freehold with a 180-year lease – to relocate from Stamford Bridge to any other location.
If the CPO fails to approve the request, Chelsea may be forced to forfeit its name in the process of the relocation.
Some financial leverage
Undoubtedly, the relocation is a mega project that will cost the London club a huge sums of money.
According to reports, the club have a 1.2 acre next to Stamford Bridge which is estimated to worth £50million.
This could be a substantial financial leverage in their bid to move out to Earls Court – their next home ground.
Meanwhile, it is still unclear how the majority of Chelsea fans will receive this new development.
Recall that Todd Boehly planned lofty projects immediately after he took over as Chelsea owner.
Among them was a planned name change, and a new home ground in USA; all were greeted with a heavy backlash from Chelsea fans.
The planned relocation to Earls Court may strike the same chord and receive another backlash from the Blues’ fans.
