Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is looking to expand his soccer club portfolio, with a Portuguese club catching his eye.
Reports claim the American businessman is currently in talks to purchase Portimonense Sporting Club in Portugal. Boehly, along with his partners, also co-own the Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB) and Los Angeles Sparks (WNBA).
The Portuguese club is currently fourth in the Primeira Liga standings. Founded over 100 years ago, Portimonense has never won a top division title or a significant trophy. They have, however, reached European competition once in the 1980’s. Portimonense was knocked out of the UEFA Cup, now called the Europa League, by Partizan 4-1 on aggregate.
Boehly made headlines earlier in the month when he suggested bringing an All-Star game to the Premier League. But perhaps lost in the commotion surrounding the bold statement was his plan to purchase other European soccer clubs.
“We’ve talked about having a multi-club model,” Boehly stated at the same conference in which he talked about the All-Star game. “I would love to continue to build out the footprint. There are different countries where there are advantages to having a club. Red Bull does a good job. Manchester City has a big network of clubs.”
#???????????????????????? has got a bit of everything. #ChelseaFC chairman Todd Boehly offers a fascinating glimpse into his global vision for the English Premier League club. pic.twitter.com/wa9aBHuGKe
— SALT (@SALTConference) September 13, 2022
The businessman claimed that he wanted to buy additional teams to essentially create a feeder system for Chelsea. “Our goal is to ensure pathways for our young stars to get on to the Chelsea pitch while getting them real game time. To do that is through another club in a really competitive league in Europe.”
Portuguese agent Jorge Mendes has become a consultant for Chelsea to help choose a club to buy in his homeland. Boehly and company may not be done after potentially buying Portimonense either. The Evening Standard also suggests that the new regime is surveying their options to acquire a club in Belgium as well.
Boehly has already been recently rejected by the owners of Santos (Brazil) and Sochaux (France) in attempts to purchase the clubs.
While European teams are a clear objective for Boehly, a potential purchase of a Brazilian club is also still in the cards. Young players plying their trade in the South American country apparently have more time to qualify for pesky work permits.
PHOTO: IMAGO / PRiME Media Images
