Chelsea are expected to unveil their new home shirt without a main sponsor after failing to so far strike a deal with a new company to replace mobile network Three.
The Three partnership had been in place since 2020 and finished without being renewed at the end of the 2022/23 season. Chelsea now face being the first leading Premier League club to launch a new kit without having a front of shirt sponsor in place.
Nottingham Forest didn’t have a main sponsor last season, but it remains unusual considering the enormous commercial revenue at stake. A club the size of Chelsea can command the biggest fees from sponsors, with Three paying around £40m per year for their logo to be on the shirt.
The Blues have been unable to secure a deal that ticks the necessary boxes. Talks with Allianz didn’t yield an agreement with cash sums not as lucrative as first hoped. The German insurance firm is still thought to be exploring a potential naming rights deal for Stamford Bridge once the stadium’s future is known amid redevelopment or rebuilding plans.
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Chelsea were also blocked by the Premier League from pursuing a possible partnership with American streaming platform Paramount+, a broadcast partner in the United States, over potential problems it could cause with licensing and other broadcast partners.
A potential deal with Stake.com, already featured on the front of Everton shirts, was then abandoned following heavy criticism over the ethics of partnering with a gambling platform, especially when the Chelsea Foundation has worked on gambling addiction projects.
Such a deal could only have been relatively short-term anyway given that such front of shirt sponsors are banned from 2026.
Chelsea are the only one of the established Premier League ‘big six’ and Newcastle yet to release at least one new shirt for the forthcoming season. The Daily Mail has reported that the home shirt is finally set to be unveiled on Monday and will be so without a sponsor.
Fans are expected to be able to buy the sponsor-less shirt immediately. But it is also suggested Chelsea will distribute logo heat transfer patches that supporters can iron on themselves once a new sponsor deal has been agreed.
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On this edition of Son of Chelsea, part of the 90min podcast network, Daniel Childs reacts to the latest Chelsea news, including Mauricio Pochettino’s first press conference, the teaser for the new home kit and Gabri Veiga talks. If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
This article was originally published on 90min as Chelsea set to release 2023/24 home shirt without a sponsor.
