History of Chelsea F.C. (2022–present) facts for kids
This article tells the story of Chelsea Football Club. They are a famous English football team. Their home is in Fulham, West London. If you want to learn more about the club in general, check out Chelsea F.C..
Contents
A New Era for Chelsea (2022–)
In May 2022, Chelsea Football Club announced big news. A new group of owners would take over the club. This group was led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter, and Hansjörg Wyss.
On May 25, 2022, the British government approved the sale. The new group bought the club for about £4.25 billion. The sale was completed on May 30, 2022. This marked the end of the previous owner's 19 years with the club.
Who Are the New Owners?
The main people in the new ownership group are Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. Todd Boehly is also in charge of a company called Eldridge Industries. The group also includes Hansjörg Wyss and Mark Walter.
Mark Walter and Todd Boehly own other sports teams too. They own the Los Angeles Dodgers (baseball), the Los Angeles Lakers (basketball), and the Los Angeles Sparks (women's basketball). Many different groups had to approve the sale. These included the governments of the UK and Portugal, and the Premier League.
Changes in Leadership
After the new owners took over, some big changes happened. On June 20, Bruce Buck stepped down as Chairman. He had been Chairman since 2003. He still helps the club as a Senior Advisor.
Then, on June 22, Marina Granovskaia also left. She was a long-time director at the club. These changes meant new people were taking charge.
Spending Big on Players
In the summer of 2022, Chelsea spent a lot of money. They bought more players than any other team in Premier League history. They spent over £250 million on new players.
Some of these players included Raheem Sterling, Marc Cucurella, Kalidou Koulibaly, Wesley Fofana, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The club wanted to build a strong new team.
Manager Changes
The new owners made a big decision early on. After a Champions League loss, Todd Boehly decided to fire manager Thomas Tuchel. This happened at the start of the 2022–23 season.
In September 2022, Chelsea hired Graham Potter as their new manager. He came from Brighton & Hove Albion. In January, Chelsea broke a British record. They signed Enzo Fernández for £107 million.
Chelsea spent over £300 million in January alone. This was more than all four major European leagues combined. However, the team's results were not good. Graham Potter was fired in April 2023. At that time, Chelsea was in 11th place.
The team scored only 38 goals all season. This was a very low number for them. They finished in the bottom half of the league. This had not happened since the 1995–96 season.
New Manager for 2023
On May 29, 2023, Chelsea announced a new manager. Mauricio Pochettino would take over on July 1, 2023. He replaced Frank Lampard, who was the temporary manager. Lampard managed the team after Potter was fired until the end of the 2022–23 season.
This meant that under the new owners, Chelsea had four different managers in less than two full years.
