Viewers of Chelsea's Premier League clash away to West Ham on Sunday may have been surprised to see the Blues in plain shirts featuring no main sponsor.
It is a rare sight. Although promoted side Nottingham Forest played much of last season without a main shirt sponsor, it is highly unusual for one of the Premier League's biggest clubs to start a new campaign without a deal in place.
Up until the end of last season, Chelsea's main shirt sponsor was telecommuncations company Three, but the £40m-per-year deal ended in the summer.
Since then, the Blues have been negotiating with a number of possible replacements.
A possible deal with broadcaster Paramount+ was reportedly vetoed by the Premier League as it was thought it could upset rights holders.
After that, a link-up with gambling company Stake was considered, but news of that possible deal provoked an angry reaction from fans due to controversial links with Chinese billionaire Alvin Chau and his alleged relationship with criminal Triad gangs in the Far East.
The Premier League has also banned betting companies from being main shirt sponsors from 2025-26, meaning any deal with a gambling firm would be be in place for the short term anyway.
An agreement is now said to be in place with American technology giants Infinite Athlete and it was hoped that the deal would be announced last week, but Chelsea are still waiting approval from the Premier League.
Until they receive the green light from the PL, Chelsea will continue to play without a main shirt sponsor.
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A 2023/24 season preview is available for Chelsea, which discusses how the Blues can recover from last campaign.
Every single club in the top four tiers of English football have also been previewed.
Having already signed Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson in attack, the Blues have been linked with a sensational swoop for Kylian Mbappe. The two-time European champions are still trying to offload Romelu Lukaku, though, with the striker thought to favour a move to Juventus.
