Chelsea Football Club Profile
Chelsea, based out of West London, are one of the dominant professional English football clubs. They play in the Premier League and have spent much of their existence in the First Division.
They have won three league titles, four FA Cups, four League Cups, two UEFA Cup Winners’ Cups, and have reached one UEFA Champions League final. In 2003, the club was bought by Russian oil magnate Roman Abramovich.
Chelsea Football Club Facts
Full Name: Chelsea Football Club
Nickname: The Pensioners, The Blues
Founded: 14 March 1905
Colours: Blue
Home Ground: Stamford Bridge
Manager: Luiz Felipe Scolari
Premier League Titles: 3
FA Cup Titles: 4
Chelsea Football Club History
Chelsea were founded on 14 March 1905 in a pub called The Rising Sun (now The Butcher’s Hook) opposite the present-day main entrance to the ground on Fulham Road, and were elected to the Football League shortly afterwards.
Chelsea met with little success in their early years, and gained a reputation for signing big-name players and for being entertainers in the inter-war years. Their first major success was under manager Ted Drake when they won the League championship in 1954-55.
The 1960s and 70s were a successful time for Chelsea; they won the League Cup in the 1964-65 season, were FA cup winners in 1970 and they won the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup in 1971. During the late 1970s and the 1980s, Chelsea were plagued by financial difficulties, a hooligan supporter element, and relegation. Chelsea only convincingly joined the top tier of English Football again under the guidance of European Footballer of the Year Ruud Gullit who was appointed manager in 1996.
They have remained in the top tier of English Football ever since. In June 2003, Chelsea was sold to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich for £140 million.
Stamford Bridge
Chelsea have played in the same stadium, Stamford Bridge, which borders Fulham and Chelsea, since their formation in 1905. The team was actually founded for the stadium, rather than the stadium for the team.
Stamford Bridge was officially opened on 28 April 1877 but was used as a ground for athletics meetings rather than football, and it was not until the acquisition of the stadium in 1904 by the Mears brothers that the stadium was used for football.
Starting in the late 1960s, construction work was started to modernize the stadium and build a 50,000 all-seater stadium; however, due to financial and legal difficulties resulting from the construction, it was not until 2001 that the stadium was completed with a capacity of 42,055 spectators.
Supporters and Rivalries
Chelsea games regularly attract 40,000 fans to Stamford Bridge. Their varied fanbase comes from working-class communities of West London, wealthier areas like Chelsea and Kensington, and from the Home Counties.
Chelsea do not have a traditional rivalry in the manner of Liverpool and Everton or Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea fans consider their main rivalries to be Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester United and Leeds. Liverpool has become a rival more recently as a result of several cup competition clashes.
