[align=justify:mpuajfj0]Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four times. They have also been successful in Europe, winning the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup twice.
The club had their first major success in 1955, when they won the league championship. Chelsea won several cup competitions during the 1960s and 1970s, but after that did not win another major title until 1997. The past decade has been the most successful period in Chelsea’s history, capped by winning Premier League titles in 2005, 2006 and 2010, and reaching their first UEFA Champions League final in 2008.
Despite their name, the club are not based in Chelsea, but in neighbouring Fulham. The club's home is the 41,841 capacity Stamford Bridge football stadium in Fulham, where they have played since their establishment. In 2003, they were bought by Russian oil magnate Roman Abramovich.
Chelsea's regular kit colours are royal blue shirts and shorts with white socks, the combination used since the 1960s. The club crest has been changed several times in attempts to modernise or re-brand; the current crest, featuring a ceremonial lion holding a staff, is a modified version of one first adopted in the 1950s. The club has sustained the fifth highest average all-time attendance in English football. Their average home gate for the 2009–10 season was 41,423, the fifth highest in the Premier League.[/align:mpuajfj0]
Stamford Bridge
[align=justify:mpuajfj0]Stamford Bridge is a football stadium in Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London, and is the home of Chelsea Football Club. The stadium is located within the Moore Park Estate also known as Walham Green and is often referred to as simply The Bridge. The capacity is 41,841, making it the eighth largest ground in the Premier League.
Opened in 1877, the stadium was used by the London Athletics Club until 1905, when new owner Gus Mears founded Chelsea Football Club to occupy the ground; Chelsea have played their home games there ever since. It has undergone numerous major changes over the years, most recently in the 1990s when it was renovated into a modern, all-seater stadium.
Outside of Chelsea, Stamford Bridge has been used as a venue for England international matches, FA Cup finals, FA Cup semi-finals and Charity Shield games. It has also hosted numerous other sports, such as cricket, rugby union, speedway, greyhound racing, baseball and American football. The stadium's highest official attendance is 82,905, for a league match between Chelsea and Arsenal on 12 October, 1935.
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Honours
[align=justify:mpuajfj0]Domestic
First Division/Premier League
- Winners: 1954–55, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2009–10[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
- Runners-up: 2003–04, 2006–07, 2007–08[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
Second Division
- Winners: 1983–84, 1988–89[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
- Runners-up: 1906–07, 1911–12, 1929–30, 1962–63, 1976–77[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
FA Cup
- Winners: 1969–70, 1996–97, 1999–00, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
- Runners-up: 1914–15, 1966–67, 1993–94, 2001–02[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
Football League Cup
- Winners: 1964–65, 1997–98, 2004–05, 2006–07[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
- Runners-up: 1971–72, 2007–08[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
FA Charity Shield/FA Community Shield
- Winners: 1955, 2000, 2005, 2009[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
- Runners-up: 1970, 1997, 2006, 2007, 2010[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
Full Members Cup
- Winners: 1985–86, 1989–90[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
European
UEFA Champions League
- Runners-up: 2007–08[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
- Winners: 1970–71, 1997–98[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
UEFA Super Cup
- Winners: 1998[/*:m:mpuajfj0]
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Squad
[align=justify:mpuajfj0]Petr Cech
Henrique Hilario
Ross Turnbull
Branislav Ivanovic
Ashley Cole
Paulo Ferreira
David Luiz
John Terry
Alex
Jose Bosingwa
Jeffrey Bruma
Patrick van Aanholt
Michael Essien
Ramires
John Obi Mikel
Yuri Zhirkov
Frank Lampard
Florent Malouda
Yossi Benayoun
Nemanja Matic
Gael Kakuta
Joshua McEachran
Nicolas Anelka
Salomon Kalou
Didier Drogba
Fernando Torres
Fabio Borini
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Staff
[align=justify:mpuajfj0]Manager: Carlo Ancelotti
Assistant: Bruno De Michelis
Assistant: Paul Clement
Goalkeeping Coach: Christophe Lollichon
Physical Coach: Coach Glen Driscoll
Second Team Coach: Steve Holland
Junior Team Coach: Dermot Drummy
Club Doctor: Dr. Bryan English
Main scout: Michael Emenalo
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Useful
Links
Place ranking
Third place in Barclays Premier League. With 58 points obtained in 31 matches.
Last Match:
2-1
Next Match:
16th Apr 2011, 15:00
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