Why can Chelsea sell players to Strasbourg?
- Published
Chelsea and Strasbourg are allowed to sell players to each other despite being in the same multi-club ownership portfolio.
In June 2023, the Ligue 1 club was bought by BlueCo, a consortium headed by American businessman Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali for £65m.
There are significant connections between Chelsea and Strasbourg, who are managed by Englishman Liam Rosenior, with goalkeeper Mike Penders, Kendry Paez and Mamadou Sarr all on loan from Stamford Bridge.
Strasbourg have also signed multiple players from Chelsea, including Ishe Samuels-Smith, Mathis Amougou and Diego Moreira in the last two seasons.
Under the Premier League's rules, any transfers between clubs in the same ownership group need to be assessed by the league first to ensure they represent 'fair market value'.
The Premier League's auditors assess the transfer, and then decide if it can go ahead. They could in theory put a halt to any proposed transfer deemed to be unfair or overpriced.
That is yet to happen in the case of Chelsea and Strasbourg, with Ben Chilwell the latest Blues player making the move to the French club.
Chelsea are only allowed to loan six players out overseas per season, with a maximum of three players loaned to one club under Fifa's rules.
Issues also arise when two clubs in a multi-club ownership qualify for the same Uefa competition.
Uefa would bar Chelsea and Strasbourg from making transfers of any kind between the two clubs if that were to happen.
When Ineos owned Manchester United and Nice both qualified for the Europa League in 2024, United were prevented from signing Jean-Clair Todibo by Uefa.
However, Chelsea are in the Champions League after finishing fourth in the Premier League and Strasbourg are in the Conference League.
This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team.
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