Chelsea fans snub Abramovich
Published 22:58 08/10/11 By Paul Smith
Chelsea supporters are set to deliver a massive snub to Roman Abramovich.
The Chelsea Pitch Owners’ Association (CPO) look certain to veto the sale of Stamford Bridge to the Russian billionaire at an EGM on October 27th.
Chelsea have written to the 12,000 members of the CPO asking them to release the freehold of Stamford Bridge so the club could in the future relocate to a new 65,000 seater stadium.
CPO was set up in 1993. At the time, the fans were keen to prevent Stamford Bridge from being sold for development.
Now Abramovich is offering £1.2m for the CPO shares. In return he promises that the club will not relocate outside three miles from Stamford Bridge if they find a new home by 2020. The CPO shareholders have no guarantees about what could happen after that.
Chelsea have looked at several new sites, but the stand-out option is Battersea alongside the Thames.
