Chelsea Stamford Bridge stadium plan latest - Earl's Court bid, Wembley move, redevelopment update

The long-term future for Stamford Bridge has been a point of uncertainty at Chelsea for years. It is already over 10 years since Roman Abramovich first tried to move the club away from its historical home.

The arrival in 2022 of American-based owners Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly was expected to see things accelerate towards some form of conclusion. Nearly three years down the line and very little has changed.

Chelsea still play at Stamford Bridge, with the women's team based at Kingsmeadow - where the Under-21 side and sometimes Under-18 sides will also be stationed for matches when not at Cobham. Redevelopment has not yet moved forward and alternative locations are at a premium.

As more attention is put on increasing revenue, the great Stamford Bridge problem remains. Sorting it out was part of the ownership's manifesto but so far progress has been slow.

Here, football.london has the latest on Chelsea's future at Stamford Bridge.

New land purchased

In April 2024 BlueCo, the parent company of Chelsea - and owners of Ligue 1 side RC Strasbourg under the watch of Clearlake-Boehly - agreed to buy a 1.2-acre site next to Stamford Bridge. The land was previously used as housing for veterans who have left the armed forces.

The Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions site will not be used by Chelsea directly until late 2025 at the earliest. All veterans will be rehomed. Chelsea won the bid ahead of 12 others and the land will cost around £80million.

Although the move does not guarantee anything for a potential redevelopment of Stamford Bridge it brings a key site under the club's control. With the Fulham Broadway underground station to one side and Stoll's Mansions on another, Chelsea are bound by certain restrictions when it comes to expanding or increasing the stadium's size.

The mansion buildings could still be used for office space if nothing else. Upon the purchase being announced, Chief Operating Officer Jason Gannon said: “We are delighted to increase our footprint at Stamford Bridge and take a significant step towards ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of the club."

Personnel changes

Gannon is the latest in a line of figures to be given the responsibility of overseeing the complex stadium challenge. He was announced last year having been promoted internally.

Having worked as managing director on the SoFi Stadium - home to NFL side LA Rams and LA Chargers - Gannon is seen as a key hire. He comes in after Janet Marie Smith, another senior player with stadium experience after working on the LA Dodgers' home arena - left her role as a consultant.

Jonathan Goldstein, a director and board member at Chelsea, has also been heavily involved up to this point. He is a property development expert and has worked closely with Boehly.

Earl's Court plans

Simply due to the location of Stamford Bridge, in a densely populated area of southwest London and occupying a place in a corridor of historical significance dating back to Henry VIII, rebuilding and renovating up or out has not been possible for Chelsea. Although having the Stoll Mansions site certainly helps, it does not guarantee anything imminent is about to happen.

Moving away from the current site is also complicated. Any new stadium elsewhere would have to be given the stamp of approval by the Chelsea Pitch Owners in a vote. When Abramovich attempted to get permission he was denied it by the members, who can buy shares of the land.

One of the more popular potential moves is the land at Earl's Court. It is currently for sale with the Earl's Court Development Committee (ECDC) submitting a presentation for a multi-use redevelopment project.

No football stadium is part of the plans but reports suggest Chelsea remain in the mix albeit on the outside of buying the land. It is claimed that the club held talks with Transport for London (TFL) as one of the partners looking after the site.

Chelsea could still have a shot at moving to the site just over a mile away from Stamford Bridge if plans become too expensive for the ECDC. No bid has been placed for the Earl's Court land, which is said to be valued at around £500million.

The ECDC say: “There is no plan within our plans for Chelsea FC to relocate to the Earl’s Court site. We have a fully detailed design, shortly to be registered with both local authorities, which prioritises the delivery of thousands of homes and jobs, culture and open space through a well-designed and considered master plan which has evolved over four years of engagement.

"This will see development commence in 2026 with the first residents and occupiers moving in from 2030. This is, and will remain, our primary focus.”

Temporary stadium

One of the options for Chelsea is a stand-by-stand redevelopment. This would, in principle, allow the team to continue playing at Stamford Bridge but with a reduced capacity. There are major complications with this.

Another option that remains on the table is a total rebuild. That involves demolishing the current structure and is likely the most expensive solution.

If this was to be the route taken by Chelsea, a temporary home would be needed. A lack of suitable or popular alternatives has thrown this idea in the air as well.

Wembley is a natural one to be considered after Tottenham played there for 18 months before making the short move to their new ground off the back of White Hart Lane. England's rugby stadium Twickenham has also been touted previously as a short-term home for London clubs moving.

Neighbours Fulham and their expansion of Craven Cottage are also spoken of as an outside possibility. Given that a redevelopment could take as long as five years or more, the situation is problematic.

What has been said

Boehly has been open about the nature of the situation. Speaking last May he said: "Well, we're working on this. What's the stadium plan going to do?

"I think we've got a really unique spot in London. So many people can walk to come to a Chelsea game. "We're basically in the heart of West London. But, you know, we only have a stadium that seats about 40,000, and to be able to upgrade the quality of the stadium and the size of the stadium is really a priority for us over the course of the next decade.

"It's already started. You have to have a lot of conversations with a lot of constituencies because you're in the middle of London. The good news is you're in the middle of London. But the bad news is you're in the middle of London."

Upon the completion of Abramovich's sale to Clearlake-Boehly it was confirmed that "the proposed new owners will commit £1.75billion in further investment for the benefit of the club. This includes investments in Stamford Bridge, the academy, the women’s team and Kingsmeadow and continued funding for the Chelsea Foundation."

Shortly after the takeover, Goldstein spoke openly about the challenges. "The fact that people need to be aware of is that there is no existing planning permission on the site," he said. "There was planning permission but it's lapsed so we have to start again. We're at the beggining of that process and obviously there's two alternatives. You either redevelop the existing stadium of you take it down and build a new one on the site.

"We're very tight at Stamford Bridge, the Chelsea Pitch Owners are part of that process and we're going through our own educational process, we will then consult with fans and local authorities. I would hope that over the next 12 to 18 months you will be able to invite me back and I'll be able to tell you how we intend to take that forwards."

It is now more than two years since Goldstein's comments. Chelsea continue to consider the landscape but are once more finding things tricky.