Chelsea got everybody talking with all the long-term contracts we started handing out under the new ownership — so much so that UEFA changed their amortization rules to stop us from ruining football yet again — so it seems only fitting that we would reward those in charge of executing these shenanigans with their own long-term contracts.
And that’s precisely what has transpired, according to [The Telegraph](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2025/08/14/chelsea-leadership-contracts-winstanley-stewart-shields/), with sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, as well as recruitment specialists Sam Jewell and Joe Shields all signing new six-year contracts, good through 2031. All four had contracts running through 2028 previously.
In fairness, these chuckleheads have managed to turn around their reputations and outside perceptions to a fairly impressive degree, with Chelsea’s recent recruitment starting to feel much more cohesive than in the early days of the new ownership. Granted, it would’ve been hard to make it more haphazard, but credit where credit’s due, the sporting directors have executed the ownership’s plan to the best of their abilities: “Not wavering from the strategy” and in “recognition of all the work done since the start of 2023, together with a commitment of trust in the plans moving forwards,” as per the [report](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2025/08/14/chelsea-leadership-contracts-winstanley-stewart-shields/).