Chelsea could be set for a bumper pay day this summer that would go a long way to easing their concerns around the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR).
The Blues will head to the US this summer to participate in the revamped and expanded FIFA Club World Cup, a competition where Chelsea will be one of only two Premier League representatives, by virtue of the club winning the UEFA Champions League in 2021. The other team competing will be Manchester City.
World football’s governing body is hoping that the revamped and expanded competition next summer, which will be held in the United States from June 15 to July 13, with 32 teams from across the UEFA, CAF, CONCACAF, AFC, CONMEBOL and OFC regions.
Given that the expanded format had essentially created a new competition, one where it isn’t known just how high the interest will be in it, there were serious question marks that existed around just how much FIFA could expect to rake in from broadcasters.
For the competing 32 clubs, how much FIFA could raise from the rights auction was important as it has a direct impact on how much the clubs can earn from taking part in the competition.
Last year, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti had expressed his own concerns, even going so far as to say the club wouldn’t be taking part as it didn’t make financial sense because more money could be achieved by going on a pre-season tour and hosting exhibition games on their own back.
READ MORE:Chelsea stars on transfer red alert after £92m agreement as Enzo Maresca left brutal dilemma
READ MORE:Two Chelsea stars return and Jadon Sancho dropped as Enzo Maresca makes brutal decision
That created a concern for FIFA in that clubs could end up sending ‘reserve’ squads to compete, diluting the appeal of the competition, choosing instead to send their true first-team stars where the money was, in the markets where they have significant commercial partners that they need to keep happy on an annual basis.
In December it was announced that DAZN had acquired the rights to broadcast for a sum of around $1bn, a development that will embolden competing clubs in putting their eggs in the Club World Cup basket, with sums of as much as $50m each for those taking part mooted.
At the start of this month the focus has once again been put on the financial benefit of taking part in the competition, with FIFA declaring that the prize money distributed to clubs would be a $1billion pot, stating that all of the revenue achieved would find its way back to the participating clubs.
“The FIFA Club World Cup will not only be the pinnacle of club football, but also a vivid demonstration of solidarity that will benefit clubs at large to a scale that no other competition has ever done,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement.
“All revenue generated by the tournament will be distributed to the participating clubs and via club solidarity across the world as FIFA will not keep a single dollar. FIFA’s reserves, which are there for global football development, will remain untouched.”
It has been reported that as much as $100million will be on offer for the victors of the competition, placing a huge significance on the tournament for the likes of Chelsea, who will be one of the teams fancied to go all the way. A sum that high, for winning, would be equivalent to a run to the knockout stages of the Champions League and would be significantly impactful for Chelsea, a club that have had to sell tangible assets such as hotels, as well as effectively sell the women’s team to themselves, in order to get around PSR issues borne from the heavy outlay on transfers that has seen a spike in annual amortisation costs.
Chelsea have yet to make the Champions League under the ownership of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, something that very much wasn’t part of the plan when the deal was done in May 2022. However, this season they have a chance of making the top four, and if they can achieve that, allied with some success in the Club World Cup, then it would make a significant difference to the financial outlook and what the club can do in the market, and could be the trigger to see an upturn in fortunes for the longer term.