Chelsea have not yet ruled out leaving Stamford Bridge and building a stadium on a new site, despite securing the £80m purchase of some neighbouring land this week.
Chelsea were given permission by the board of trustees of local veterans charity Stoll to go ahead with the deal that had already been agreed in principle and appeared to point towards the likelihood of demolishing and rebuilding Stamford Bridge rather than permanently moving elsewhere.
Rebuilding on the same site would mirror what Tottenham did with White Hart Lane, whereas Arsenal moved to a new location when they built the Emirates Stadium back in 2006.
But no decision one way or the other has seemingly been made and both options remain open. The only thing that appears to have been ruled out is redeveloping Stamford Bridge stand by stand, which is more like the route that Liverpool have gone down with Anfield in recent years.
The Daily Telegraph has reported that rebuilding Stamford Bridge and moving to a new stadium at a new site are both still “working options”. Moving is said to be of particular interest to Chris Jurasek, who was appointed Chelsea’s new chief executive in May – he is responsible for “all the business areas of the club”, while Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley oversee sporting activities.
No decision is thought to be imminent either.
The Blues have arguably outgrown Stamford Bridge in its present state, with a 40,000 capacity that lags well behind the biggest Premier League stadiums and consequently significantly limits what the club can earn when it comes to matchday revenue.
The prospect of Chelsea building a brand new stadium has been on the table for more than a decade, ever since former owner Roman Abramovich oversaw a £60m bid in 2012 to buy Battersea Power Station on the banks of the River Thames in south west London.
That bid was unsuccessful, while plans were submitted as early as 2015 to build a new 60,000-seat Stamford Bridge on the site of the current stadium. Permission for the proposed project was granted in 2017, but it was always going to have to be done in phases, while the club changed hands in 2022.
Although leaving Stamford Bridge would be the end of well over a century of history on the site, among the biggest remaining obstacles when it comes to rebuilding is where Chelsea would play while it is uninhabitable. Tottenham spent close to two full seasons at Wembley, while Barcelona have made a temporary home at the site of the 1992 Olympics during Camp Nou reconstruction.
Wembley, Twickenham and Craven Cottage have all been mooted as options for Chelsea.
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