The turn of the year came with difficulties for Chelsea as Enzo Maresca parted ways with the club after there had seemingly been tensions behind the scenes between the manager and the Blues’ management. The Italian had won two trophies in his debut season as well as securing Champions League qualification.
As things stand, the Blues look to have settled under new manager Liam Rosenior as they sit fourth in the Premier League table. That being said, the old problems have persisted, as evident from their poor result against Burnley.
Chelsea got the early lead but then could not put the game to bed, as it felt like they took their foot off the gas. Then Wesley Fofana saw a red card, followed by Burnley scoring a 92nd-minute equaliser. The result could be a major blow to the Blues’ Champions League qualification hopes.
On the other hand, there was some positive news coming out of Chelsea yesterday. But at the same time, one of their long-term problems will persist despite it.
Chelsea finally announce front of shirt sponsorship deal
Chelsea announced a multi-year global partnership with IFS, the world’s leading provider of Industrial AI, on the club’s official website.
But according to BBC Sport, IFS will move off the front of the shirt in the summer, although the wider agreement will run until 2028. Chelsea are seeking around £65 million per season from their next long‑term front‑of‑shirt partner.
Chelsea’s last long-term front-of-shirt sponsorship deal, worth £40 million per season, ended in 2023. The Blues also had short-term deals with two other companies, Infinite Athlete and Damac.
To be very honest, it is hard to make sense of the strategy. Even if Chelsea end up landing that £65 million per season deal, which feels pretty unlikely, they will not be making up for the money that has been lost by not having a long-term sponsor for effectively the last three seasons.
Chelsea have plenty of other problems to deal with
However, the Blues management will have plenty of other problems on their mind after a pretty quiet winter transfer window. The club were not able to bring in any new recruits for their persistent problems. Naturally, it should come as no surprise that not much has changed under Rosenior.
Plenty of changes are needed at Stamford Bridge if Chelsea are to become Premier League and Champions League contenders again. Do the owners have the vision to make those changes? That is the big question right now.
