Chelsea begin talks with council about training ground improvements
- Published
Chelsea have held pre-application talks with Elmbridge Borough Council about upgrades to their training ground.
It is the first known time the Blues have taken their plans to external stakeholders, having long considered improvements aimed at bringing the facilities up to a world-class standard.
The club's base in Cobham was considered state of the art when it was built under former owner Roman Abramovich in 2004. Although it remains a high-quality facility, it has since been surpassed by many of Chelsea's elite rivals in England and abroad.
Following the 2022 takeover, the Boehly-Clearlake consortium quickly identified the need for investment int training facilities for all men's, women's and academy teams.
Former academy director Neil Bath was subsequently put in charge of the project. However, he left in July 2024 after helping secure a plot of land opposite the entrance to the training ground, expanding the club's development options beyond its existing 40-acre site.
Now, after former co-owners Todd Boehly and Mark Walter each sold their stakes in Chelsea for £475m last month, club officials are keen to make wide-scale improvements to the infrastructure over the coming years.
The talks with the council are non-binding and remain at an exploratory phase, but would normally precede a formal planning application.
Such discussions are designed to reduce the risk of an application being rejected by identifying areas that may attract support or opposition, whether from local residents, environmental concerns or other planning considerations.
There have already been improvements ongoing to security, fencing and cosmetic features.
As well as improve the training ground, Chelsea want a long-term solution for their stadium.
The two options understood to remain under consideration are the redevelopment of Stamford Bridge, which would require Chelsea to play at a temporary home, potentially Wembley Stadium, during construction, or a move to a site at Earls Court.
The Earls Court option would involve Chelsea seeking to become part of the wider redevelopment of the west London site, which was formerly home to the Earls Court Exhibition Centre.