The end of the 2022/23 has arrived for Chelsea. The Premier League season is finished and Blues stars can make their way for a break before discovering what life is like under Mauricio Pochettino
There is no doubting the work that must be done for the Blues to improve both on and off the field. While there will be plenty of activity shaping Pochettino's squad and hopefully trimming it down, there will be work throughout the club with the arrival of new CEO Chris Jurasek, who will be aided in transition by the departing Tom Glick.
Among the first issues to be resolved and announced is Chelsea's latest shirt sponsor. The west London side's agreement with Three is set to come to an end while the future of sleeve sponsor Whale Fin may also need to be resolved.
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Chelsea's shirt reveals were kept low key for 2022/23 and supporters were left waiting. The home kit was not released until July 2022, while the away shirt was not announced until the Blues kickstarted their season against Everton in August. It was not available to purchase for a further month. It was October before last term's third shirt was available to buy.
Of course, the process was disrupted by the sanctions placed on the club combined with the takeover.
Where do things stand with the kits?
Both 2023/24 and 2024/25 kits are signed off, while the 2025/26 design process is underway. Designers are now based in London rather than Portland in a bid to grow their understanding of club culture as the deal with Nike still stands to continue until 2032. The American company has previously took responsibility for shirt launches but the club will do this in partnership with the brand.
There is currently no release date for the 2023/24 shirt, and until a new club shirt sponsor is announced, there is unlikely to be movement on that front.
Kit leaks so far
Home kit
The Blues are set to return to a golden trim on their kit for 2023/24, following on from popular 2005 and 2013 shirts. footyheadlines report that kit is set to include a golden badge and Nike logo with the possibility of light texturing to the top with a criss-cross pattern - though this is not yet confirmed.
Away kit
footyheadlines further reports that the away shirt is set to be inspired by a previous away kit in terms of the colour scheme from 2002/03. While there will be a blue and navy complexion however, a more extravagant design awaits with a graphic set to be used. The Blue colour for the base, collar and cuffs is said to be the same as that used for Barcelona's home kit in 2021/22.
Sponsorship
Chelsea's deal with Three is set to come a close this summer, having entered into the final year of the deal when the sponsorship was restarted, after the mobile phone company paused their deal when Chelsea were sanctioned.
The package was believed to be worth a figure comparable to the £40million-per-year agreement that had been in place with Yokohama Tyres. Pre-sanctions ambitions in the partnership were high with Three facilitating a full 5G network at Stamford Bridge, as part of a bid to enhance the fan experience. Augmented reality overlays were touted to be used for fans to study in-game player statistics in real-time such as ground covered, top speed, shots on target and passes made. Multiple cameras around the ground mean supporters in the stadium could have the easy option of viewing a moment of play or goal from a different angle, such as the other end of the ground or from the substitutes' bench.
However, there have already been reports over a number of companies speaking to the club with Allianz becoming the most public name to emerge. There is hope the club can find a deal as valuable as with Three but not qualifying for the Champions League will have provided some greater difficulty.
There has also been the suggestion that sleeve sponsor WhaleFin, a cryptocurrency firm who pay around £20million-a-year, could also see their partnership end. They are part of Amber who reports in December noted hoped to terminate the deal amid issues arising from the FTX scandal. However, WhaleFin was still present on Blues' shirts on the final day of the season.
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