Xabi Alonso has had his say on the ownership transition at Chelsea, which puts Clearlake and, therefore, Eghbali in full control.
Xabi Alonso has admitted that Behdad Eghbali and Clearlake Capital having almost full control of Chelsea is a “good” development for the club.
Chelsea announced on Wednesday that Clearlake Capital have bought Todd Boehly and Mark Walter’s stakes at the club and therefore acquired full control.
Under the previous arrangement, Boehly, Walter, and Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss each had a 12.8 per cent stake at Chelsea, while Clearlake held the remaining 61.5 per cent.
Boehly and Walter have also sold their shareholding in Chelsea’s partner club, Strasbourg.
The club's official statement confirmed that Wyss will remain a minority stakeholder and partner in the ownership group. Meanwhile, Clearlake, led by co-founders Eghbali and Jose E. Feliciano, make the decisions.
Chelsea’s day-to-day operations and strategy are expected to remain unchanged, despite Boehly leaving his post as Chairman and no plans in place to appoint a successor. Sky Sports reports that, aside from Boehly and Walter, Jonathan Goldstein has also stepped down as a director.
Alonso: Simplicity in ownership structure is "good"
This applies to Alonso, who has mostly been in touch with Egbhali among the owners. The Chelsea manager argued that clarity over the club hierarchy, with Egbhali at the top, will prove beneficial.
“I think that it's an important day for the club when there is an important change in the structure of the club and the ownership,” Alonso said in Thursday’s press conference.
“A few points. I have to thank the former owners for the work they've done.
“I was not here, but I know that they played an important role, and now that Behdad is taking more control, almost full control, I think it's good that the main one is clear.
“I have very good relations with Behdad; he was the one who came to Madrid to explain the project to me, to convince me, and we are working well together.
“As I mentioned, this is phase one that we have completed in the project of the squad, and it's good, and now we move on together.”
Based on Alonso’s comment, it is clear that Eghbali runs the show at Chelsea, for the most part.
It's suggested that Clearlake paid close to £1 billion for Boehly and Walter’s stakes, which together amount to a quarter of the club.
This means those stakes were sold with Chelsea valued at around £4bn, while people close to the transaction maintain the club’s overall value is around £5bn.
It suggests a possible increase in valuation, given that in May 2022 the UK government forced Roman Abramovich to sell the club for £2.5bn, with a guarantee of £1.5bn in future investment. Boehly led the consortium at the time, having co-owned the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Sparks.
The rise in valuation is hardly a surprise given Chelsea’s investment, especially in player acquisitions, in the last four years. That said, there is an argument that, in terms of on-pitch accomplishments, Chelsea have not met expectations under BlueCo ownership so far.
Since the takeover, Chelsea have won two trophies: the FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Conference League in 2025, under six permanent head coaches/managers: Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Mauricio Pochettino, Enzo Maresca, Liam Rosenior, and Alonso.
Alonso is the only one on the list to be handed the title of manager, which suggests greater influence in Chelsea’s football operations, including recruitment.
