Todd Boehly 'running out of time' at Chelsea as Tottenham takeover mooted - Kieran Maguire
Today at 12:23 PM
The ownership dynamics at Tottenham and Chelsea could not be more different, with Daniel Levy and ENIC very much a united front and Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali anything but.
Despite the fact that the American billionaire actually owns just 13 per cent of the club, Todd Boehly became the face of the new Chelsea regime after the takeover in May two years ago.
In reality, however, while Boehly did appear to be the chief decision maker at Chelsea at the dawn of the post-Roman Abramovich era, it is Clearlake Capital who are really the ultimate power at Stamford Bridge.
Private equity titans Clearlake are spearheaded by Behdad Eghbali, whose relationship with Boehly had become fractured to the point where each is exploring how to buy the other out.
About 10 miles north from SW6, Tottenham are also contemplating a shake-up of their ownership structure, though one that has materialised for very different reasons.
Daniel Levy is leading the hunt for minority investment in Spurs, with the club having enlisted the Rothschild bank to smoke out potential bidders for a 10-20 per cent stake.
With Levy and ENIC valuing Spurs at around £3.75bn, there is a very limited pool of investors who have both the capital and the inclination to pay so much for a stake without significant voting rights.
Former Newcastle United supremo Amanda Staveley has expressed an interest in Spurs, but other updates have been thin on the ground since that news emerged in the summer.
So what progress if any have Spurs made? And could new developments this week signal that Boehly might be interested in pivoting from West to North London?
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Todd Boehly vs Behdad Eghbali: What has gone wrong at Chelsea?
With almost £1.5bn spent and very little show for it save for some green shoots under Enzo Maresca this season, the Boehly-Eghbali regime is in the midst of civil war.
“Part of the issue at Chelsea is a breakdown in strategy, communications and objectives between Boehly and Clearlake,” says Liverpool University football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire, speaking to TBR Football.
It appears that the two men have different visions for the club that go as deep as the dilemma over whether to expand Stamford Bridge, Eghbali’s preference, or move to a new site like Boehly wants too.
But given the ownership structure and an apparent pre-agreed limit on Boehly’s term as Chelsea chairman, it is clear who has the high card in the corporate tug of what.
“Boehly is running out of time,” says Maguire.
“In 2027, he is due to hand over his duties as chairman. His influence on day-to-day activities has substantially diminished.
Todd Boehly, Daniel Levy’s new partner at Tottenham?
This week, Matt Slater ruminated on the complexities of the situation at Chelsea in a piece for The Athletic and speculated about whether Boehly could potentially turn his attention to Spurs.
“As he and fellow Chelsea director Jonathan Goldstein have previously tried to buy Tottenham Hotspur twice before, the possibility of a third crack can never be ruled out, particularly as at least some of Spurs are currently on the market. It is, though, for the moment, just a hypothesis,” he wrote.
| Position | Team | PlayedMP | WonW | DrawnD | LostL | ForGF | AgainstGA | DiffGD | PointsPts |
| 1 | LiverpoolLiverpool | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 6 | 13 | 25 |
| 2 | Man CityManchester City | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 21 | 11 | 10 | 23 |
| 3 | Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 19 |
| 4 | ChelseaChelsea | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 12 | 8 | 18 |
| 5 | ArsenalArsenal | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 18 |
| 6 | Aston VillaAston Villa | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 18 |
| 7 | TottenhamTottenham | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 22 | 11 | 11 | 16 |
Incidentally, Goldstein is a Spurs supporter and has just embarked on another business with Boehly in a bid to buy the Hundred cricket franchise London Spirit.
But could Boehly really make such a dramatic gear shift? It would be a surprise, according to Maguire.
“Spurs is Daniel Levy’s baby,” he said.
“He is a lifelong Spurs fan and he has a very forensic, line by line approach to all aspects of the club and particularly the business side.
“He is not short of opinions on the playing side either. I just can’t see Boehly and Levy working together. “I think it’s very much a long shot.”
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The latest with Amanda Staveley and Spurs
Having brokered both the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s takeover of Newcastle United and the deal that saw Abu Dhabi buy Man City in 2008, Amanda Staveley is one of the biggest names in football finance.
She was effectively ousted from her position as a director and minority shareholder at St James’ Park after the summer and is now explicitly engineering a move back into football.
Staveley is interested in investing AS Monaco as a potential alternative to Spurs.
Previously, her old allies PIF had been interested in Monaco too. But the Newcastle owners’ decision to slash funding on foreign investment likely means they will not rival her if she does opt for Monaco.
Other than that, there have been very few developments save for a few cryptic Companies House updates since Staveley all but confirmed she was interested in Spurs earlier this year
