Chelsea are set to enter the season without a front-of-shirt sponsor for the second consecutive year. Infinite Athlete, last year’s sponsor, only signed up to a one-year deal before later agreeing to continue to be on the club’s shirt during pre-season.
Chelsea’s 2024-25 kit is being sold on the website without a
front-of-shirt sponsor and they will be the only Premier League club to begin
the season having failed to secure a partner.
An announcement on a new sponsor should be made soon, and it
is expected to be worth similar to what Infinite Athlete paid — around £40m—
for the 2023-24 season.
There were discussions with Riyadh Air, an airline company
owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, but a multi-year partnership to
sponsor the men’s and women’s teams couldn’t be found.
Other conversations in the past have been had with Kaiyun
Sports, a betting website.
Chelsea will be mindful of entering a long-term deal given
the fee won’t be as high as it would be if they were in the Champions League.
The fear would be signing a multi-year contract at a lower
rate than what Champions League clubs receive, only to qualify for the
competition at the end of this season.
That would leave them at a financial disadvantage to their
domestic rivals who can command larger fees due to their involvement in
Europe’s lucrative club competition.
Signing a short-term deal with a company keeps cash
flow ticking over for the season and then allows them to re-evaluate where
they stand next summer.
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