Football
Chelsea Under Todd Boehly Have Spent More Than Double All 47 Other Conference League Playoff Teams Combined
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It’s no secret that Chelsea’s spending under Todd Boehly has been exorbitant, but the figures are even more astounding when compared to the other teams in UEFA Europa Conference League playoff action.
The Blues have spent more than £1billion on transfers since American businessman Boehly took charge in May 2022, with a net spend of £718m.
That’s more than double the total spend of all 47 other Conference League playoff teams combined.
Chelsea’s play-off opponents, Swiss side Servette, have spent a grand total of £1.2m on transfers since 2022, while generating £7.7m from outgoing deals.
Despite spending 946 times more on signings than their opponents in the same period, Enzo Maresca’s men laboured to a 2-0 victory in the first leg at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night.
They travel to Geneva for the return leg on Thursday, 29 August.
Chelsea Spending Under Boehly Vs Other Conference League Playoff Teams
| Spent (£M) | Sold (£M) | Net Spend (£M) | |
| Chelsea | 1135 | 417 | 718 |
| Other 47 Clubs | 528 | 738 | -210 |
*Transfer data via transfermarkt.com
Even after adding up the total spend since 2022 of every other club in the Conference League Playoffs, the figure only reaches £528m, just 46% of Chelsea’s spend.
And the other 47 other clubs actually have a negative net spend, having made a £210m profit between them in the last two years.
This is perhaps unsurprising, due to the type of clubs that regularly feature in the Conference League, though.
Teams from Europe’s lesser-known leagues, as well as those on the fringes of European places in major leagues, can often only spend as much as they bring in from player sales.
But even the ‘bigger’ clubs in the competition have spent next to nothing in comparison to Premier League big boys Chelsea.
Top Spending Clubs In Europa Conference League Playoffs (Since 22/23)
| Spent (£M) | Sold (£M) | Net Spend (£M) | |
| Chelsea | 1135 | 417 | 718 |
| Fiorentina | 112 | 111 | 1 |
| RC Lens | 108 | 129 | -21 |
| Real Betis | 71 | 102 | -31 |
| KAA Gent | 43 | 70 | -27 |
| Trabzonspor | 39 | 24 | 15 |
| FC Copenhagen | 36 | 65 | -29 |
| Panathinaikos FC | 31 | 4 | -27 |
| Cercle Brugge | 11 | 18 | –8 |
| Basaksehir FK | 10 | 11 | –1 |
| FK Partizan Belgrade | 8 | 17 | -9 |
*Transfer data via transfermarkt.com
Chelsea Net Spend Demonstrates Their Failings
There are a number of smaller teams in the competition who rarely, if ever, sign players for transfer fees.
The likes of Gibraltar’s Lincoln Red Imps and the Cymru Premier’s The New Saints rely on free transfers, and have spent nothing on signings over the past three seasons.
But even when comparing just the top ten spending clubs in the Europa Conference League playoffs, Chelsea’s outgoings are in a league of their own.
Only Fiorentina and RC Lens have spent more than £100m in the time Todd Boehly has been at Chelsea, whilst Real Betis are the only other club to spend above £50m.
Of these three clubs, Fiorentina are the only ones with a positive net spend, splashing a whopping £1m in net transfers since 2022.
Such a disparity in spending power demonstrates the huge gulf in finances between the Premier League and the rest of Europe.
But for Chelsea to even be in the same competition as many of these clubs highlights their abject failure in recent years.
The record-breaking Chelsea spending under Boehly must start to bring success eventually, as they cannot continue splashing the cash without purpose.