Chelsea at risk of having transfers blocked

Strasbourg's unexpected rise up the Ligue 1 table could have a considerably negative impact on Chelsea given the sides are part of the same multi-club ownership model.

BlueCo, the consortium fronted by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, added Strasbourg to their portfolio of sporting investments in 2023. At the time of the purchase, the French side from Alsace were relegation battlers and had only finished in the top half of Ligue 1 twice in the 21st century.

However, Strasbourg have enjoyed a brilliant campaign, climbing up to the heady heights of fifth place thanks in part to the guidance of their English head coach Liam Rosenior and a shared relationship with Chelsea. Yet, the passage of players moving between the two clubs could get plugged if they both continue to succeed.

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin recently reiterated: "Clubs [in the same UEFA competition] are not allowed to transfer players between themselves or on loans, to establish commercial cooperation, or to share scouting databases."

Chelsea currently have goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic and Brazilian younster Andrey Santos on loan at Strasbourg this season. More pertinently, the Blues have reportedly agreed a deal to bring 19-year-old centre-back Mamadou Sarr to Stamford Bridge in the summer. Yet, according to UEFA's regulations, this transfer "will therefore not be possible if Strasbourg and Chelsea were to participate in the same European competition", as pointed out by Foot Mercato.

Manchester United suffered this very fate when they were blocked from buying Jean-Clair Todibo from Nice last summer given INEOS' involvement in both clubs which had each qualified for the Europa League.