According to Chelsea’s new owner Todd Boehly, UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules are starting to bite, and teams will no longer be able to recruit players ‘at any price’ due to the danger of penalty.
Chelsea was purchased in May by an investor group led by Boehly and Clearlake Capital after former owner Roman Abramovich placed the club up for sale following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow refers to as a ‘special military operation.’
Chelsea has been the most successful side in England since Abramovich purchased the club in 2003, thanks in large part to his investment.
‘Financial Fair Play is getting some fangs, which will limit the capacity to buy players at any price,’ Boehly stated at the SuperReturn International conference in Berlin.
‘UEFA takes it seriously and will continue to do so. (More teeth) entails financial penalties and exclusion from sporting events.’
Boehly, a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, stated that he hoped to employ an American model to improve football’s commercial potential and assist Chelsea players in developing a stronger personal brand.
‘We believe the worldwide reach of this sport is very underdeveloped,’ said Boehly. ‘There are four billion European football enthusiasts.’ The NFL has 170 million supporters. Global club football receives a small portion of the NFL’s media budget.
‘We’ll also be looking about how to increase revenue for the players. Consider (the NBA’s) LeBron James, who has a whole business and crew dedicated to what happens off the field.’
‘I believe there is a potential to bring some of that American mentality into English sports and really improve them.’
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