Ken Bates and the Chelsea pitch owners

I haven't been a great fan of Ken Bates in the past.  I am not a Chelsea supporter, although I have nothing against the club.  Indeed, I remember Charlton playing Chelsea in the mid-1950s.   In those days supporters mixed and one of the Chelsea fans gave me a blue balloon.  However, when I got off the 53 bus some miserable so-and-so said, 'Wrong colours for round here.'

I suppose I was a bit suspicious of people living in Monaco, part of a location once described as 'a sunny place for shady people.' Bates is now 90 years old but gets back for Chelsea games when he can.   An interview in The Times with him on Saturday was very interesting.   It is behind a pay wall and protected by copyright.

He talks about when he bought a debt-ridden Chelsea in 1982.   The club was losing £12,000 a week (£45k in current prices) and the bank was threatening to bounce its cheques.   He joined the board for a Saturday match and found 36 people in there enjoying a four course meal with brandy and port.  He knew he had to cut costs and the first thing he did was to sack the club chauffeur!

His big legacy is Chelsea Pitch Owners, originally intended to repel property developments from a valuable piece of land, but now a source of significant power for the fans.  The other side of the coin is that it complicates any sale.

Bates sold the pitch off at £100 a square foot.   CPO own the freehold and grant a long lease to the club.  76 per cent would have to agree to a takeover of the ground.    CPO also control the name of the club which would have to be changed if they moved away from Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have looked at sites elsewhere in London, but never found that is suitable or affordable.  Given the nature of the site, redeveloping the Bridge will be complicated and costly, but without it their long-term status as a top six club would be at risk.