Strasbourg is becoming a force in French and European football, but its links with Chelsea continue to anger a minority of supporters.
Fifth in Ligue 1 – after finishing seventh last season to qualify for Europe for the first time in six years – they are one of the best teams in the Conference League this season.
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They will then host competition favorites Crystal Palace at their revamped Stade de la Meinau on Thursday (8:00 p.m. GMT).
However, Strasbourg – bought by BlueCo under Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for ÂŁ65m – are yet to win over some of their die-hard ultras, who describe them as Chelsea’s ‘feeder club’. It’s a claim that club president Marc Keller denies.
Several deals between Chelsea and Strasbourg have raised eyebrows this year, including:
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Mathis Amougou’s move to Strasbourg this summer, after joining Chelsea from St Etienne in February.
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Ishe Samuels-Smith joined Chelsea on deadline day – in the same window he moved to Strasbourg for £6.5m and then went on loan to Swansea.
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Chelsea prospects Mike Penders and Kendry Paez will be loaned to Strasbourg.
The Strasbourg ultras – four groups of supporters totaling 1,539 members – believe that the multi-club model compromises traditional club values.
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Keller previously said the ultras had “crossed the line” by targeting captain and star striker Emanuel Emegha with a banner describing him as a “pawn of BlueCo” during a match against Le Havre earlier in the season.
This followed the announcement that Emegha would join Chelsea in July 2026.
Another group of supporters criticized Keller – a former France international and club legend – but the majority remain behind him.
“I know a minority of people still have questions about the multi-club model,” he told BBC Sport. “Of course we continue the dialogue and I think the best answer, given that I was a footballer, is on the pitch.
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“I don’t think we are a feeder club, because as a feeder club we send three, four, five, six players to Chelsea every season.
“I think it’s more… a relationship between younger brothers, as they say in France, but they say brother club in England. We help each other.”
Is what is good for Chelsea good for Strasbourg?
Behdad Eghbali, owner of BlueCo, alongside Strasbourg president Marc Keller, who retains a minority stake in the club (Getty Images)
Keller, who led the consortium that bought Strasbourg for one euro in 2012, helped revive a club that played in the amateur fourth division after a financial collapse.
They returned to Ligue 1 five years later and are now competing on the European stage, two years after striking a partnership with Chelsea.
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“Discussions with Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly from the beginning focused on how to create a smart multi-club model, while using more financial power,” Keller said.
“We have improved every year and were in a strong financial position before the takeover, but with new partners we can dream a little bigger and think about getting into the top six or seven to qualify for Europe every year.”
At Stade de la Meinau, BlueCo’s investment is evident, with cranes completing the stadium’s expansion from 26,000 to 32,000 seats – the finishing touches to a ÂŁ157 million redevelopment.
Walking around the modernized stadium, one notices incredible attention to detail, including monuments dedicated to each player to wear the blue jersey.
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“The right balance is ambition but with tradition,” Keller said.
“We are investing a lot to build an organization around the team to help players go higher. This includes personnel, data, physiotherapy, player care and recruiting networks.”
Sporting director David Weir was hired last month, after leaving Brighton.
But, just like at Chelsea, Strasbourg’s team had already been transformed by BlueCo – with ÂŁ112 million spent to build the youngest team – aged just 21.5 on average – in the big five leagues. Chelsea are fourth, behind their partner club, as well as Paris St-Germain and Parma.
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Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos was the first to benefit from a transfer between the clubs – he spent 18 months on loan at Strasbourg – and claims he still watches their matches and texts his manager Liam Rosenior.
“We try to work well with the Chelsea technical team to have good players for Strasbourg,” explains Keller. “It would have been impossible for us to have Mike Penders, Andrey Santos or Dorde Petrovic in the past, so that’s positive.
“Strasbourg and France are a good stage for the development of young players, and this BlueCo project is a quality construction.
“We are investing a lot in a young generation. It may happen that one player per year is enough for Chelsea. But our project is to have other players in the best clubs in Europe, not just at Chelsea. It is not correct to say that they will come to Chelsea.
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“They come to Strasbourg because of ambition.”
Strasbourg sold ÂŁ74m worth of players this summer, including Dilane Bakwa to Nottingham Forest and former captain Habib Diarra to Sunderland, both for around ÂŁ30m.
Rosenior – the rising star of management
Liam Rosenior previously managed Hull City and Derby County (Getty Images)
The way Strasbourg are playing under Rosenior is exciting, and Chilwell believes the former Hull City manager will go “straight to the top”.
Rosenior is very popular at BlueCo. Although he is improving his French, he continues to deliver the majority of his team’s presentations and press conferences in English.
His reputation for player development, style of play and dressing room management saw him linked with several clubs over the summer, including Bayer Leverksuen.
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“Liam plays high-level football and we play with a young team, so they have space to play,” Keller said.
“BlueCo knew him from England and when I met him he was clear about what he wanted to create in Strasbourg – and what he said is exactly what is happening now.”
Multi-club ownership is common but controversial
Multi-club ownership (MCO) dates back to the 1990s, but the City Football Group (CFG), made up of Manchester City and 13 clubs around the world, popularized the concept in English football.
Almost half of the 20 Premier League clubs are now part of the MCO: Manchester United, Brighton, Nottingham Forest, Brentford, Aston Villa, Burnley, Leeds United and Bournemouth. Crystal Palace were before Woody Johnson bought John Textor this summer.
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“It’s a global trend,” Keller said. “Today, 48 or 49% of clubs in the five biggest European leagues are under MCO. Every MCO is different. We are trying to put in place a smart organization that works closely and positively, and in compliance with UEFA and Fifa regulations.”
These regulations can be restrictive.
At the end of last season, Chelsea and Strasbourg could have found themselves in the same European competition – forcing BlueCo to settle a “blind trust” to temporarily dilute its influence over the French club.
Brighton owner Tony Bloom did this with Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise, while Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis diluted his control last season when they could have ended up in the same competition as Olympiacos.
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Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe moved his two other Ineos-owned clubs – Nice and Lausanne-Sport – into this structure, and City Football Group placed Girona in a blind trust in 2024.
If Strasbourg and Chelsea were to find themselves in the same competition in the future, they could be prohibited from lending players for three transfer windows. This restriction was imposed on Manchester United/Nice and Manchester City/Girona in 2024.
