Strasbourg are becoming a force in French and European football, but their links with Chelsea continue to anger a vocal minority of fans.
Sitting fifth in Ligue 1 – having finished seventh last season to qualify for Europe for the first time in six years – they are among the leading teams in the Conference League this season.
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They next host competition favourites Crystal Palace at their redeveloped Stade de la Meinau on Thursday (20:00 GMT).
However, Strasbourg – bought by BlueCo ownership under Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for £65m – are yet to win over some of their hardcore ultras, who describe them as Chelsea’s «feeder club». It is a claim 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 in the summer, having joined Chelsea from St Etienne in February.
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Ishe Samuels-Smith rejoining Chelsea on deadline day – in the same window he moved to Strasbourg for £6.5m, then went on loan to Swansea.
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Chelsea prospects Mike Penders and Kendry Paez moving on loan to Strasbourg.
Strasbourg’s ultras – four supporter groups with a combined membership of 1,539 – believe 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 a «BlueCo’s pawn» during a match with Le Havre earlier in the season.
That followed the announcement that Emegha would join Chelsea in July 2026.
Another fan group criticised Keller – a former France international and club legend – but the majority remain behind him.
«I know a minority of people are still asking some questions about the multi-club model,» he told BBC Sport. «Of course, we continue dialogue, and I think that the best answer, as I used to be a footballer, is on the pitch.
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«I don’t think we are a feeder club, because a feeder club we are sending three, four, five, six players to Chelsea every season.
«I think it’s more… like a younger brother relationship, as we say in France, but you say sister club in England. We help each other.»
Is what’s good for Chelsea good for Strasbourg?
BlueCo owner Behdad Eghbali stands 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, has helped revive a club that were playing in the amateur fourth tier after financial collapse.
They returned to the Ligue 1 within five years, and are now competing on the European stage – two years after entering into the partnership with Chelsea.
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«Discussions with Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly have been about how to create a smart multi-club model from the beginning, while using more financial power,» said Keller.
«We 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 the Stade de la Meinau, BlueCo’s investment is evident, with cranes finishing the stadium’s expansion from 26,000 to 32,000 seats – the final touches of a £157m redevelopment.
Walking around the modernised stadium, there is incredible attention to detail, including monuments to every male and female player to wear the blue jersey.
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«The good balance is ambition but with tradition,» Keller said.
«We are investing a lot to set up an organisation around the team to help the players go higher. That’s in staff, data, physio, player care and scouting networks.»
Sporting director David Weir was hired last month, after leaving Brighton.
But, just as at Chelsea, Strasbourg’s squad had already been transformed by BlueCo – with £112m spent on building the youngest squad – averaging just 21.5 years of age – in the big five leagues. Chelsea are fourth – behind their partner club, plus Paris St-Germain and Parma.
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Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos was the first to benefit from a move between the clubs – spending 18 months on loan at Strasbourg – and says he still watches their matches and texts manager Liam Rosenior.
«We try to work well with the technical team of Chelsea to have good players for Strasbourg,» says 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 is a good step for the young players to develop, and this BlueCo project is about building quality.
«We are investing a lot in a young generation. It can happen that one player per year is good enough for Chelsea. But our project is to have other players around top clubs in Europe, not just Chelsea. It’s not correct to say they are coming to go to Chelsea.
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«They are coming to Strasbourg because of the ambition.»
Strasbourg sold £74m of players in the summer – including Dilane Bakwa to Nottingham Forest and former captain Habib Diarra to Sunderland, both for around £30m.
Rosenior – the rising star of management
Liam Rosenior previously managed at Hull City and Derby County [Getty Images]
The way Strasbourg play under Rosenior is exciting, and Chilwell believes the former Hull City manager will go «right to the top».
Rosenior is highly regarded at BlueCo. Though he is improving his French, he continues to deliver the majority of his team talks and news conferences in English.
His reputation of developing players, his style of play and his dressing-room management led to him being linked with multiple clubs over the summer, including Bayer Leverksuen.
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«Liam is playing top football and we are playing with a young team, so they have space to play,» said Keller.
«BlueCo knew him from England and when I met him he was clear about what he wanted to set up in Strasbourg – and what he said is exactly what is happening now.»
Multi-club ownership common but controversial
Multi-club ownership (MCO) can be traced back to the 1990s, but City Football Group (CFG) – featuring Manchester City and 13 clubs across the world – popularised the concept in English football.
Almost half of the 20 Premier League clubs are now in MCOs – Manchester United, Brighton, Nottingham Forest, Brentford, Aston Villa, Burnley, Leeds United and Bournemouth. Crystal Palace were before Woody Johnson bought out John Textor in the summer.
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«It’s a global trend,» said Keller. «Today, 48% or 49% of the clubs in the top five leagues in Europe are under MCO. Every MCO is different. We are trying to set up a smart organisation that works closely and positively, and within regulations from Uefa and Fifa.»
Those regulations can be limiting.
At the end of last season, Chelsea and Strasbourg could have ended up in the same European competition – which forced BlueCo to set up a ‘blind trust’ to temporarily dilute its influence over the French club.
Brighton owner Tony Bloom did that with Belgian outfit 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 put Girona into a blind trust in 2024.
If Strasbourg and Chelsea were to end up in the same competition in future, they could be barred from loaning players to each other for three transfer windows. That restriction was placed on Manchester United/Nice and Manchester City/Girona in 2024.
