Chilwell Becomes Sixth Chelsea Player Sold to Strasbourg

Ben Chilwell Joins Strasbourg as Sixth Chelsea Exit This Summer

Ben Chilwell has officially joined Strasbourg in a permanent deal, becoming the sixth Chelsea player to transfer to the French club during the 2025 summer window. The left-back, who had two years remaining on his Chelsea contract, has signed a deal of the same duration with Strasbourg — a club co-owned by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital through their BlueCo consortium.

This move helps Chelsea avoid having an additional unwanted player in Enzo Maresca’s squad, particularly one with a significant salary — as Chilwell was signed under the previous Roman Abramovich regime and remains one of the club’s higher earners.

The deal was structured as a permanent move due to FIFA’s loan limit, which restricts clubs from loaning more than three players to the same team per season. With Chelsea having already maxed out their international loan quota with Strasbourg, a transfer was the only solution.

Full List of Chelsea Departures to Strasbourg

Chilwell follows five other players in moving to Strasbourg this window:

• Mike Penders (loan)

• Kendry Paez (loan)

• Ishe Samuels-Smith (£6.5m permanent)

• Mathis Amougou (around £12m permanent)

• Mamadou Sarr (returned on loan after Chelsea bought him from Strasbourg earlier this summer)

This coordinated movement highlights the strategic alignment between Chelsea and Strasbourg under the BlueCo multi-club model.

Sterling & Disasi Remain Unsold

While Chilwell has secured a fresh start in France, Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi remain in limbo.

Sterling, Chelsea’s highest-paid player at £325,000 per week, failed to secure a move despite interest from Fulham and Bayer Leverkusen. His preference was a London-based club to remain close to his school-age children, but no official bid materialized.

The 30-year-old spent last season on loan at Arsenal but made little impact, and was excluded from Chelsea’s Club World Cup squad, training separately with the rest of the so-called ‘bomb squad’ during pre-season.

Similarly, Disasi, 27, was loaned to Aston Villa for the second half of last season and wanted to return to Monaco. However, Chelsea had already used their final international loan spot on Nicolas Jackson’s £14.3m move to Bayern Munich, making that impossible.

Though Premier League clubs face no such loan restrictions, Disasi was unable to finalize proposed moves to Bournemouth or West Ham before the window closed.

Multi-Club Ownership and UEFA Regulations

While multi-club ownership has stirred regulatory concern, UEFA had previously cleared Manchester City (Girona) and Manchester United (Nice) to compete in European competitions with affiliated teams.

Similar scrutiny was expected around Chelsea and Strasbourg. However, the clubs adhered to UEFA’s requirement to avoid any loan or permanent transfers between July 2024 and September 2025 — a rule that no longer applies following the window’s closure.

Final Take

With Ben Chilwell now confirmed as a Strasbourg player, Chelsea’s focus shifts to resolving the futures of Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi, whose wages and lack of suitors have complicated exits. As the transfer window closes, the BlueCo strategy continues to influence player movement and squad trimming at Stamford Bridge.