Chelsea showed promising signs during their third season under Todd Boehly’s ownership – this summer, they have a chance to accelerate that progress.
The Blues return to the Champions League in 2025-26 after finishing fourth in the Premier League, while Enzo Maresca’s side also romped to victory in the Conference League.
This summer, they also take part in the Club World Cup, courtesy of their Champions League triumph under Thomas Tuchel back in 2021.
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Why Club World Cup matters to Chelsea
The Blues are currently fifth favourites to win the tournament behind Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain – they kick off against Los Angeles FC in Atlanta on June 16, before further group games against Flamengo and Esperance de Tunis.
Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has been encouraged by their recent results, and believes they need to build on that momentum this summer – particularly given the huge sums of prize money on offer.
Asked if Chelsea can win the Club World Cup, he said: “We hope so, we always go into tournaments to win trophies.
“The culture of Chelsea is to win trophies, we managed to create that culture and now it’s right for this new generation to continue in that trajectory of winning. We saw that this season with qualifying for the Champions League, with winning the Conference League, we’ve laid the foundation, and we have to keep that momentum of winning.
“If we can win the Club World Cup, it’s going to be massive for us and not just that, you’re talking about getting £100m for winning this tournament.
“That would be a huge amount of money coming into the club – all of a sudden you’re in a much better position than other clubs in the Premier League who didn’t participate in the tournament, because you have £100m to bring in more players.
“There’s a lot to play for – I’m sure the players, the board and manager at Chelsea are thinking ‘We have to go out there and perform, and make sure we win the tournament’.”
Chance for African stars
Mikel will be a pundit for DAZN during the Club World Cup – he also earned 91 caps for Nigeria during his career and sees the tournament as a huge opportunity for players from African clubs.
As well as Esperance de Tunis, Egypt’s Al Ahly, Morocco’s Wydad and South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns are taking part.
“I’m excited about this tournament, the first time with this new format, 32 teams,” he said. “The financial side is going to be huge, not just for the big clubs but the lesser teams as well.
“We get to see some great match-ups – teams from Africa, Asia and South America competing with the big boys like Manchester City, PSG and Bayern Munich. For 60 per cent of the games, it’s the first time we’re going to see those two sides face each other.
“For the lesser teams, it’s an opportunity for those players to showcase themselves, to compete on the world stage. You never know, there might be a surprise player who blows everybody away, announces himself to the world and one of the big boys signs him. I hope that happens – it would be a great story for the tournament.”
John Obi Mikel was speaking in association with the Club World Cup – watch every game on DAZN for free, by signing up at dazn.com
