Chelsea in danger of losing 15-year-long mega Nike contract following UK Government sanction on Roman Abramovich
According to the Daily Mail (h/t the Sun), Nike are considering walking away from their 15-year kit deal with Chelsea following yesterday’s announcement that the UK Government had frozen Roman Abramovich‘s assets and placed him on the sanction list.
The Blues are undergoing a major crisis since the news on the Russian businessman broke out last evening. ‘Three’ have already suspended their shirt sponsorship deal with the London-based outfit and Nike are said to be seriously considering pulling out of their agreement too.
The two parties agreed on a 15-year-long, £900m deal back in 2016 but after the sudden turn of events at Stamford Bridge, Nike are considering ‘walking away’
According to the Sun, this could cost the Blues an unbelievable £540m, which is another blow to Chelsea following news that they may not get their prize money from the Premier League and UEFA this season. The Londoners are also expected to lose money with ticket sales to Stamford Bridge being suspended.
Although Stamford Bridge has been sold out for the next two matches against Newcastle and Brentford, going forward, Chelsea are set to lose up to £600k per game.
An existential crisis for the Blues?
The future of the London-based outfit seems to be very much in limbo, and this development regarding Nike only adds to the existing mess that they are in. Shirt sponsors are a major source of finance for many football teams, and if a giant like Nike pulls out, it would really send a widespread message that could make other sponsors reconsider their ties with us while Abramovich is still the owner.
While there is no clear idea as of now on what the solution can be, the government of the UK will apparently consider an application for a license to sell the club under the condition that Abramovich does not get any of the profit from the sale. If that was indeed to happen, American billionaire Todd Boehly, in partnership with Swiss tycoon Hansjorg Wyss is said to be keen on taking over at Stamford Bridge.
The past year has seen unbelievable highs and equally hard-hitting lows for the Blues. From winning the Champions League and the Club World Cup and achieving the feat of having won all the possible trophies in Abramovich’s reign, to the sudden unexpected downfall, we fans have now seen everything.
While the suddenness of all that is unfolding might seem very jarring for Chelsea, they will be hoping to bounce back as soon as possible. Right now, Chelsea can still play football and are still in contention for the Champions League and FA Cup, and despite all the external noise, Tuchel will want his team to focus on the football.
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This all seems like a bad dream that we are bound to wake up from- but it isn’t. Fans have backed this club when it was not doing well before the takeover in 2003, and they will continue to do so no matter what happens in the coming weeks. Chelsea have stood the test of time and the club will surely bounce back from this. We just have to be patient.
