Chelsea is currently grappling with a challenging situation related to plans for constructing a new stadium.

According to The Sun, the leadership of “The Blues” has indicated that they have only two options – either play away from Stamford Bridge for 6 years during the renovation period or pay a substantial amount to purchase nearby land for the construction of a new stadium.

Disappointment looms over the team under the new ownership of Todd Boehly as Chelsea is experiencing a lack of progress. Last October, the redevelopment plan for Stamford Bridge seemed to take a significant step forward when the board of the Stoll Charity, a charitable organization, approved the sale of land for veterans to Chelsea. The sale of the majority of the Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions land for £80M is currently being negotiated and is expected to be completed this year.

Previously, Chelsea had considered relocating the stadium to the Earl’s Court area near Stamford Bridge. However, the focus is now on expanding the current stadium with a capacity of 40,341 seats at a cost of £2B.

Chris Isitt, Chairman of the Chelsea Pitch Owners Board, made a statement confirming that they expect the club to make a decision on the stadium plan soon, warning that the redevelopment could take up to seven years.

The statement emphasizes, “CPO has not received any notice of any decisions by the Club regarding future plans for the stadium. We believe the decision will be made soon after considering all available options. After obtaining planning permission, the estimated time needed for demolition and reconstruction will range from 4 to 7 years, during which the club will have to relocate home matches.”

The Earls Court Land Development Company stated that Chelsea has no plans to build a football stadium at this location.

“We completely deny that any negotiations are taking place with Chelsea FC regarding the relocation of the stadium to the Earls Court area,” the statement clarified.

Chelsea has faced obstacles in implementing large-scale redevelopment projects under former owner Roman Abramovich. However, funding for the reconstruction has been allocated as part of the £4.25B club acquisition deal by co-owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in May 2022.

Chelsea plans to increase the capacity of Stamford Bridge to 60,000 seats, on par with Premier League rivals. This means The Blues will have to play away from Chelsea for over 4 years.

Proposed venues for home matches during the renovation include Wembley, Twickenham, and Craven Cottage, the home ground of Fulham, a neighboring team in west London.

Boehly has had unofficial talks with Shahid Khan, Fulham’s owner, about the possibility of sharing the stadium. Although this is the most convenient option as the stadium is only a mile away from Chelsea, playing at Craven Cottage (capacity 25,700) could result in significant loss of revenue for The Blues.

If Chelsea’s owners choose to renovate each stand individually, the process could take considerably longer than 4 to 5 years. Experts believe Chelsea’s target of completing the plan by 2030 is “overly optimistic.”