Keith Wyness reveals 'problem' at Chelsea after official documents analysed

Correspondent AUTHORITY Football finance journalist specialising in the financial landscape of the Premier League and SPFL. FOCUS Financial analysis, club economics, and data-led coverage across the top flight and Scottish football. THE INSIGHT Ciaran utilises a network of financial and industry contacts to deliver verified, data-driven analysis. He provides the numbers behind the noise to ensure fans understand the fiscal reality driving decisions at the top of the game.

Published on:

07 Mar 2026, 2:30 am

Chelsea are not in a stable financial position as revenue is failing to keep up with what the club are spending on the pitch.

That is according to ex-Everton, Aston Villa, and Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, after figures released by UEFA showed Chelsea made a pre-tax loss of £342million in the 2024-25 season.

The Blues made £511m in revenue, significantly lower than some Premier League rivals, whilst they spent £388m on player wages alone before other costs.

Chelsea have spent over £1billion since BlueCo took over in 2022, with the club currently sixth in the Premier League table.

Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly at Stamford Bridge

(Credit: Imago)

Chelsea in 'very concerning' financial situation

Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs - believes Chelsea should have "pushed harder" to agree commercial deals.

Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast, Wyness worries about the club due to the gap between revenue and cost.

He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “It’s very concerning, to be honest. You've got to look at this in two ways.

"Chelsea, basically they've been spending a lot of money. We understand that, but they've been spending about what the other major European clubs would expect to spend. The problem is their revenue side has not been keeping up.

"Now, for many weeks we've been talking about things like the front of shirt for Chelsea that have never materialised. And it makes me really wonder why they haven't pushed harder, and accepted deals at a lower price.

"Given this sort of gap that we're seeing between revenue and cost. Now, the revenues also that they've had, and I'd worry slightly because a lot of the contribution there came from winning the Club World Cup.

"Now that was a bit of a one-off and that's not something you can count on being repeatable, even if it was every few years. So that's something that has got to be taken into account as well.”

(Photo Credit: Imago)

Chelsea's new sponsor deal comes under scrutiny

Wyness told Football Insider that he also has a problem over Chelsea's new shirt sponsor deal with AI company IFS, which will come to an end at the end of the season.

The London club will once again be in the market looking for a shirt sponsor in the summer, having struggled to agree a long-term deal with any company over the past couple of years.

Chelsea could earn as little as £5m from their deal with IFS, with five Premier League home games left offering little exposure.

Chelsea FC

Keith Wyness