Olaleye Idowu
Chelsea could be banned from the Champions League next season, unless they agree to a UEFA demand.
With three games left in the current Premier League season, the Blues sit in fifth place, two points ahead of sixth-placed Nottingham Forest.
Due to the Premier League’s coefficient score, the top five teams will qualify for the Champions League.
Chelsea last played in the European competition in the 2022/2023 campaign.
Enzo Maresca has led the Blues to the Europa Conference League final, where they will play Real Betis.
Winning that competition, or finishing sixth in the top-flight would see Chelsea qualify for next year’s Europa League.
But the ownership situation at Stamford Bridge could create problems for the Blues. Their current owners are BlueCo, with the consortium also possessing a controlling stake in Ligue 1 side Strasbourg.
They currently sit sixth in the French top-flight, enough to qualify for the Europa Conference League. But with two games remaining, they are only a point behind Monaco, who hold the final Champions League group stage qualification place.
UEFA rules prevent multi-club ownership models from operating in their competitions.
According to BBC Sport, BlueCo have been in talks with UEFA since January over moving to a structure that would be compliant with the rules.
