Chelsea may have got creative in their efforts to get around Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) before the season ends, according to reports.
The Blues have been the biggest-spending club in the world in recent years, splashing out more than €1 billion on transfer fees since Todd Boehly took the reins in 2022.
That astonishing outlay hasn’t led to success, however, with the Blues finishing last season 12th in the Premier League and now sitting seventh with two games to go in 2023/24. In March, Chelsea reported a £90 million pre-tax loss for the year ending June 2023, after a £121.4m loss in the previous financial year.
🚨EXCLUSIVE: Is this why Chelsea have told Ornstein they no longer need to sell before 30 June 2024? 🚨Chelsea have now attempted to sell (or have actually sold) their Cobham Training Ground to themselves (ie intra-group). Their lawyers applied to register this dealing in… pic.twitter.com/wQez9X0qiMMay 12, 2024
That raised questions about how the club would remain in line with Premier League and UEFA financial rules, after a season in which Everton and Nottingham Forest suffered points deductions for breaches of PSR.
Now Manchester City’s former financial advisor Stefan Borson has reported that Chelsea “have attempted to sell (or have actually sold) their Cobham Training Ground to themselves (ie intra-group.)”
“Their lawyers applied to register this dealing in early February (after the window creaked shut),” he explained on X (formerly Twitter).
“So Chelsea's 23/24 PSR confidence appears to be based on this intra-group accounting profit to outweigh the expected £200m+ operating loss.”
Borson posted an application enquiry made in February and raised a few questions alongside it.
He wrote: “Has it been approved by the PL? Is there really over £100m-150m FMV profit to be had from Cobham? And was the property validly held anyway because Chelsea Training Ground Limited was dissolved in 2015 giving rise to a potential bona vacantia issue? Other sales too?”
The report comes after David Ornstein of The Athletic reported that Chelsea were “confident” of not having to make further sales before June 30 to avoid PSR breaches for 2023/24.
Borson posed the question: “Is this why Chelsea have told Ornstein they no longer need to sell before 30 June 2024?”
Chelsea face Brighton away on Wednesday before completing their season at home to Bournemouth on Sunday.
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