The multi-club model is one of the most controversial issues in football finance, and Chelsea’s relationship with Strasbourg is at the sharp end of the discourse.
Since BlueCo – the consortium encompassing Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital and others – bought Strasbourg in June 2023, there has been a steady flow of playing talent between the two clubs.
David Fofana swapped Chelsea for the Ligue 1 side on deadline day, becoming the 12th player to move between the two outposts of the BlueCo network this season alone.
Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior has, of course, also moved through the clearly defined hierarchy.
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Not for the first time since the takeover, Strasbourg fans weren’t happy. While their club has actually fared relatively well on the pitch and expanded their stadium since BlueCo pitched up in the south of France, most supporters feel their club has lost its unique identity.
The noise in the football finance industry meanwhile is that Behdad Eghbali, Boehly and the rest of the ownership group are not finished expanding their multi-club network. Various clubs in Portugal and South America have been mooted as the next possible takeover target.
But while multi-club networks allow the owners to develop players, hedge risk and develop a shared commercial identity, they also come with a high degree of regulatory uncertainty.
And with a crucial deadline approaching, BlueCo have been told to avoid a potential conflict of interest between Chelsea and Strasbourg – or face expulsion from European competition.
Chelsea owners must place Strasbourg in blind trust
As relayed by football finance expert Stefan Borson, UEFA have confirmed that ownership groups who anticipate that two or more of their clubs could qualify for the same European competition must put measures in place to comply with its multi-club rules by 1 March.
Last season, this deadline saw a number of owners place one or more of their clubs in so-called ‘blind trusts’, whereby the team would be placed under the operational control of a third party for the subsequent season.
Strasbourg's supporters hold banners hostile to the new owner of the club reading "Losing executives, deplorable strategy - Only one person to blame, Blueco" during the French L1 football match between RC Strasbourg Alsace and stade Brestois 29 at the Stade de la Meinau in Strasbourg, eastern France, on February 24, 2024.
Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP via Getty Images
Famously, former Crystal Palace co-owner John Textor failed to do that and, as a result, Palace were relegated from the Europa League to the Conference League after another of his clubs, Lyon, qualified for the Europa by virtue of having finished higher in their domestic league.
In Chelsea’s case, if Strasbourg – who are currently 7th in Ligue 1 – were to finish 4th and get into the Champions League while Chelsea themselves qualified by finishing 5th, Chelsea would be relegated to the Europa League.
A blind trust arrangement before 1 March therefore looks essential
“You need to avoid this,” says University of Liverpool football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to The Chelsea Chronicle.
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“Chelsea have a lot of experienced executives, so I would anticipate that they would take these appropriate steps to make sure the risk of a conflict of interest is minimised.
“It would be hugely embarrassing if Strasbourg finished in a higher place and, as a result, Chelsea were kicked out of the Champions League or Europa League.
“They are also so dependent on Europe because they still haven’t got a shirt sponsor. So they must hand over control officially before the prescribed cut-off to avoid that embarrassment.”
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