BlueCo, the consortium that owns Chelsea, has taken the first step in their multi-club venture by acquiring a stake in Ligue 1 side Strasbourg.
Adding clubs as partners to their Premier League investment has long been a priority for the group who took charge at Stamford Bridge in May 2022 and their partnership with Alsace could be the first of many interest previously shown in the Brazilian and Portuguese teams.
The announcement of BlueCo’s deal with Strasbourg did not confirm what stake the Chelsea owners will have in the Stade de la Meinau, but it is believed they will be majority shareholders, potentially holding nearly 100 per cent of shares in the club. In particular, the media statement stated that BlueCo would be “the new shareholders”. Reports in France value the deal at €75 million.
“It is an honor for us to be part of this historic club,” said BlueCo in a press release. “We are committed to preserving Racing’s heritage and are focused on working closely with Marc [Keller, Strasbourg’s president] and his management team to continue the excellent work they have been doing. This strategic investment would strengthen our presence in European football alongside our ownership of Chelsea. We believe this would create huge opportunities to share knowledge and expertise.”
Marc Keller remains chairman of the club, while the management team stays on after one season Le Racing finished 15th.
“We have built a club that is healthy and well managed at every level,” he said. “Although there was no financial urgency, we were aware that we had reached the ceiling of our model, and if we wanted to continue moving Racing forward and project it into a new dimension, we necessarily needed a solid structure capable of was about supporting our development and our ambition, so I am excited about the prospect of welcoming a new strategic investor, with whom we would accelerate the club’s ambition to build tomorrow’s racing.”
Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly has previously spoken of a multi-club system as “providing avenues for our young superstars to enter the Chelsea pitch while getting real playing time”.
Among their Premier League rivals, City Football Group operate a similar model to Manchester City, the flagship of 12 clubs in which the organization has interests. UEFA currently restricts access to European competitions for clubs with the same ownership, but president Alexander Ceferin said in March those rules should be reviewed.
French football has proven to be a rich prey for English clubs in recent years and Chelsea will not only give talented youngsters a chance to score minutes in Ligue 1, but will undoubtedly also try to leverage their newly built connections in the country to create a some of the best prospects in the country.