Finance guru: Chelsea must now overcome ‘historic’ issue as £1bn plot confirmed
Chelsea would extract less value from the sale of stadium naming rights compared to rival clubs due to Stamford Bridge’s history.
That is the view of finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the struggles Todd Boehly could face should he choose to pursue a stadium sponsor in west London.
During Boehly’s takeover of the Blues back in May, the American businessman outlined £1billion plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge, and he committed to those blueprints earlier this month after abandoning any hope of building a new stadium.
As reported by the Daily Mail earlier this month (18 December), Boehly followed up on that commitment by submitting a £50million bid for a plot of land adjacent to Stamford Bridge which will be crucial to the redevelopment plans.
Despite the latest stadium investment and Boehly’s reported frustration at the club’s lack of commercial deals, sources told Football Insider (20 December) that Chelsea are not considering selling the naming rights for an expanded Stamford Bridge.
Plumley believes the history of the 41,837-capacity stadium would likely see Chelsea receive a smaller naming rights price tag than their competitors.
“It’s not a new stadium and that’s important,” Plumley told Football Insider.
“This is the challenge for clubs that have an established stadium that has a very historic name.
“If they’re trying to sell the naming rights, it’s not impossible but they’re not going to get top dollar compared to a brand-new stadium.
“We’ve seen it in the past with The Emirates and Tottenham are obviously holding out for their stadium as they clearly want a title sponsor. The value in stadium naming rights is in the newness of the stadium, Everton is another example.
“So the challenge for Chelsea and Stamford Bridge is that anyone wanting to buy the rights to that stadium knows that people will still call it Stamford Bridge, so the exposure and value that you get is less so the price tag is lower.
“There is still a deal Chelsea can sign for this but it’s not going to generate them as much as other deals we’ve seen because of the history of Stamford Bridge.
“So that puts them in a tricky position as a club because do you redevelop the current stadium or build a new one in the future?”
In other news, Chelsea in advanced talks to complete third marquee signing as Benoit Badiashile deal all but done.