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BlueCo

British-based holding company

BlueCo is a consortium led by Clearlake Capital and Hansjörg Wyss. The group was formed as the investment vehicle for the takeover of Premier League football club Chelsea in 2022, later becoming a multi-club ownership group. Its name is derived from the home colour of Chelsea, its flagship football club, and it acts as the club's parent company.

01Ownership

Although the consortium is publicly fronted by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital is the majority shareholder in BlueCo. Clearlake's co-founders, Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano, represent the firm's controlling interest in the consortium, while Boehly and other investors, including Mark Walter and Hansjörg Wyss, retain minority stakes.

On 16 September 2026, Chelsea announced that Clearlake Capital acquired the ownership interest of Todd Boehly. Hansjörg Wyss remained an important stakeholder and partner in the ownership group. As part of the transition, Clearlake also acquired Mark Walter’s ownership interest and therefore acquire full control of the Club. Todd Bohely stepped down as Chairman after his four-year tenure.

02History

Founded in 2022, BlueCo is a consortium that purchased Chelsea in 2022. It is led by Todd Boehly, chairman and CEO of Eldridge Industries, and Clearlake Capital, and it also included Hansjörg Wyss, founder of the Wyss Foundation, and Mark Walter, co-founder and CEO of Guggenheim Partners. Walter and Boehly are owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Sparks. BlueCo acquired Ligue 1 football club Strasbourg a year later to start a multi-club ownership.

03Owned clubs

BlueCo owns football clubs in England and France:

ClubCountryOwnership stakeYear acquiredLeagueNotes
ChelseaEngland100%2022Premier LeagueFlagship club
StrasbourgFrance100%2023Ligue 1Multi-club ownership expansion

Chelsea

In March 2022, former Chelsea owner, Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, was sanctioned by Western governments in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. As a result, the Premier League disqualified Abramovich as a club director, and he was forced to put the club up for sale.

On 7 May 2022, Chelsea confirmed that terms had been agreed for a new ownership group to acquire the club. The group later known as BlueCo was led by Todd Boehly, chairman and CEO of Eldridge Industries, and Clearlake Capital, it also included Hansjörg Wyss, founder of the Wyss Foundation, and Mark Walter, co-founder and CEO of Guggenheim Partners. Walter and Boehly are owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Los Angeles Sparks.

On 25 May 2022, the British government approved BlueCo's £4.25 billion takeover of Chelsea. The transaction received all necessary approvals from the UK government, the Premier League, and other authorities and was completed on 30 May 2022. After the takeover, BlueCo promised to commit £1.75 billion in further investment in the club's home stadium Stamford Bridge, the academy, the women's team, the academy and women's team's home stadium Kingsmeadow and the Chelsea Foundation.

As of November 2025, £2.35 billion of the proceeds intended to be spent in Ukraine were still frozen due to a legal dispute between Abramovich and the Government of Jersey. This was due to the Royal Court of Jersey ruling that raids on premises owned by Abramovich had been unlawful, and that Government of Jersey records linked to the original investigation had been deleted despite Abramovich having obtained their legal disclosure. The court described the behaviour of the Government of Jersey as "extreme", and legal actions continue. The court has allowed Abramovich to introduce claims of conspiracy against the Government of Jersey.

Strasbourg

On 22 June 2023, BlueCo reached an agreement to become shareholders of French club Strasbourg. The agreement would see BlueCo invest in Strasbourg's first teams and academy. It was reported that the consortium had close to a 100% ownership stake in the club, having paid €75 million.

Players and managers transfer during BlueCo era

Below are the players and managers transfer between both clubs during BlueCo era.

From Chelsea to Strasbourg

Date Name Fee
8 August 2023 Ângelo Gabriel Loan
2 February 2024 Andrey Santos Loan
11 August 2024 Caleb Wiley Loan
16 August 2024 Diego Moreira £1,700,000
30 August 2024 Đorđe Petrović Loan
12 July 2025 Mathis Amougou £12,000,000
28 July 2025 Mike Penders Loan
30 July 2025 Ishé Samuels-Smith £6,500,000
31 July 2025 Kendry Páez Loan
1 August 2025 Mamadou Sarr Loan
1 September 2025 Ben Chilwell Free
2 February 2026 Aarón Anselmino Loan
2 February 2026 David Datro Fofana Loan
3 August 2026 Genesis Antwi Loan
11 August 2026 Filip Jörgensen Loan
24 August 2026 Omari Kellyman £5,100,000
1 September 2026 Dário Essugo Loan
Deivid Washington £6,860,000

From Strasbourg to Chelsea

Date Name Fee
9 June 2025 Mamadou Sarr £11,800,000
1 September 2025 Ishé Samuels-Smith £6,500,000
6 January 2026 Liam Rosenior (manager) Undisclosed
1 July 2026 Emmanuel Emegha £22,000,000
2 August 2026 Valentín Barco £34,000,000
Watch videos about BlueCoExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article BlueCo, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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