Chelsea Football Club has a rich history filled with legendary matches, statistics, and fun facts. As a true fan, how much do you know about Chelsea? Refresh your knowledge and share these impressive facts with fellow supporters.
- The iconic lion on Chelsea’s logo has multiple sources of inspiration.
Chelsea’s crest has gone through five major redesigns throughout its history. The original lion appeared on the club’s badge in 1953, based on the civic coat of arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea in London. It also included elements inspired by the Earl of Cadogan’s family crest, who was the club president at the time, as well as the Westminster Abbots, former lords of the Chelsea Manor.From 1986 to 2005, the seated lion was replaced by a standing lion. After several variations, Chelsea returned to the original lion design in 2005. Today’s crest features the original lion, surrounded by a blue circle, two roses symbolizing England, and two footballs celebrating the game.
- Chelsea, along with Arsenal, was one of the first clubs to play with numbered jerseys.
The Blues first wore numbered shirts in a match against Swansea City in August 1928. At the time, this innovation made headlines, making it easier for spectators to identify individual players, especially the younger or lesser-known team members. However, numbered kits only became the standard in England almost ten years later, in 1939. - Stamford Bridge is owned by the fans.
Ownership of the land and the naming rights of Stamford Bridge belong to Chelsea Pitch Owners PLC (CPO), a unique organization with over 21,000 shares owned by fans. Founded in 1992 by then-chairman Ken Bates, its primary mission is to ensure Chelsea fans can continue watching football at Stamford Bridge. CPO leases the stadium to the club, while the team manages the stadium and everything related to it. - David Calderhead holds the longest tenure as Chelsea’s manager.
Scottish footballer David Calderhead managed Chelsea for 26 years, from 1907 to 1933, overseeing 966 matches. For comparison, modern Premier League managers with similar longevity include Sir Alex Ferguson, who managed Manchester United for 25 years (1988–2013), and Arsène Wenger, who managed Arsenal for 22 years (1996–2018). - Chelsea once played a match above the Arctic Circle.
On October 24, 1997, Chelsea played against Tromsø, a Norwegian club, above the Arctic Circle. Tromsø won the memorable match 3-2, but the game is infamous for the harsh conditions in which it was played. Heavy snowfall forced the game to be stopped twice so ground staff could redraw the lines using large brooms.
Chelsea’s manager, Ruud Gullit, was furious about the poor conditions. However, Chelsea came back to win the return leg 7-1, putting their initial struggle behind them. - Chelsea is part of UEFA’s “clean sweep” club.
Chelsea is one of only five clubs to have won all four of UEFA’s top tournaments—the Champions League, Europa League, Cup Winners’ Cup, and Super Cup. Chelsea was also the first English team to achieve this feat. - Frank Lampard is the Premier League’s highest-scoring midfielder of all time.
Former Chelsea manager Frank Lampard is the only midfielder to have scored 150 or more goals in the Premier League, with 177 goals in 609 appearances. He is also fourth on the all-time assist chart, with 102 assists. - They once played a Premier League match wearing their opponent’s away kit.
On April 9, 1997, Chelsea played Coventry City away in a Premier League match at Highfield Road. However, Chelsea did not bring their away kit and only had their traditional blue home strip. Coventry, the home team, wore their light blue home kit, and the referee ruled that the two kits clashed. As a result, the start of the match was delayed by 15 minutes while the issue was resolved.
Chelsea had two choices: wear Coventry’s red and black checkered away kit or forfeit the game. Naturally, Gullit’s team opted to wear the away kit, but they lost the match 3-1, despite initially leading.
Chelsea Football Club is a great team with a thrilling and storied history. Any self-respecting fan of the club should be familiar with these facts.