Exclusive: Chelsea could face ‘big issue’ after Uefa send official letter
Chelsea are at risk of falling foul of Uefa’s multi-club rules if they qualify for the same European competition as Strasbourg this season, sources have told Football Insider.
Chelsea are owned by BlueCo, which is spearheaded by Todd Boehly and Clearlake capital, following the group’s takeover at Stamford Bridge in May 2022.
BlueCo also owns a majority stake in French side Strasbourg after a securing a deal for the club in the summer of 2023.
Uefa issued a circular on Monday (8 December) warning clubs they must comply with its multi-club ownership rules by 1 March, with Crystal Palace removed from the Europa League after it was deemed they failed to comply for this season.
Sources say this presents a “big issue” for teams like Chelsea and Strasbourg, who must take “immediate action” to avoid breaching the multi-club regulations.
Why were Crystal Palace removed from the Europa League?
Palace qualified for the Europa League after beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final in May.
However, an issue emerged around former co-owner John Textor’s shares in Lyon, who also qualified for the Europa League, with Uefa’s rules prohibitting clubs controlled by the same owners or directors from competing in the same European competition.
Textor sold his Palace shares to Woody Johnson to prevent Oliver Glasner’s side from losing their place in the second-tier competition.
That action proved to be too late after Uefa deemed the American billionaire had failed to comply with its multi-club ownership rules by 1 March, with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) later rejecting Palace’s appeal.
The Eagles were then demoted to the Conference League, leading to Nottingham Forest being promoted to the Europa League as a result.
Meanwhile, Irish side Drogheda United and Slovak club FC DAC 1904 lost their places in the Conference League after also failing to comply with the multi-club rules.
Which clubs could breach Uefa’s rules alongside Chelsea?
BlueCo avoided breaching the regulations for this season after Chelsea qualified for the Champions League and Strasbourg secured a place in the Conference League.
Although there won’t be an issue for 2026-27 as things stand due to both clubs’ current league positions, the situation could change over the coming months.
Chelsea’s current position of fifth in the Premier League could earn them a Champions League place depending on how English clubs perform in Europe this season, while Strasbourg are eighth in Ligue 1.
There are other Premier League sides also at risk of breaching Uefa’s rules ahead of the deadline, with several owners currently operating multi-club models.
Everton now find themselves competing for a European place, bringing forth a potential issue for The Friedkin Group (TFG), who also own Italian giants Roma.
Meanwhile, if Forest progress deep into the latter stages of the Europa League, Evangelos Marinakis could face a potential conflict due to his ownership of Greek champions Olympiakos.
Marinakis ceased control of Forest in preparation for both clubs qualifying for the same European competition last season, but that move appeared to be passed the 1 March deadline after the relevant documents were submitted in April.
However, there was eventually no issue after Olympiakos qualified for the Champions League and Forest were promoted to the Europa League following Palace’s demotion.
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