Boehly shrugs off criticism from Chelsea fans

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Todd Boehly has described growing unrest among Chelsea fans as “par for the course”.

Many have been unhappy with the running of the club since the Boehly-led group took over from Roman Abramovich in 2022.

Despite spending more than £1bn on transfers since that takeover, Chelsea have struggled to keep up with the Premier League’s top sides.

Some fans protested against the club’s owners outside Stamford Bridge ahead of Tuesday’s 4-0 win against Southampton.

They chanted “we want our Chelsea back” and sang the name of former owner Abramovich.

Speaking at The Financial Times Business of Football Summit, Boehly was asked about the criticism from supporters.

“I think it’s par for the course. The reality is the sooner you realise you’re not going to keep all of the people happy all of the time, the freedom shows up from that,” he said.

“You’re just trying to get on with a plan and execute a plan, and recognising that things aren’t linear, but as long as you’re trending in the right direction then you feel better.

“The trend is in the right direction and I think that’s what really matters.”

Boehly owns just shy of 37% of the club via his company, BlueCo 22 Holdings, while Clearlake Capital have a majority 61.5% stake.

“I can’t predict the future,” Boehly replied when asked if he thought the ownership structure might change.

It comes after reports that the two groups want to buy each other out.