Chelsea Make Offer to Use Wembley Stadium During Stamford Bridge Redevelopment

Chelsea could be moving to the home of English football—after making Wembley a huge offer to use the national stadium while Stamford Bridge is redeveloped. 

Gary Jacobs of the Times reports Roman Abramovich is willing to part with £11 million per season in order to use the Wembley pitch from the 2017-18 campaign onwards. 

Jacobs wrote: "The club have made a presentation to Wembley Stadium’s board and want to play at the national stadium for three seasons."

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The writer added that the move could scupper Tottenham Hotspur's attempts to use Wembley, who need to leave their White Hart Lane ground for one year, during planned redevelopment in 2017. Spurs had offered Wembley £8 million per season, according to Jacobs. However, Chelsea's figure is far superior in business terms. 

Chelsea are planning a spectacular new look for their home ground—inspired by Westminster Abbey—and it would hold 60,000 supporters, per the Guardian:

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Liam Corless of the Mirror reported on the Blues' amazing architectural ambitions for their west London ground—which could make Stamford Bridge one of the greatest stadiums in the world of sport. 

The design is due to feature a large brick pillared aesthetic—and will cost more than £500 million to complete—per Corless.

Twickenham is also a possibility for Chelsea, with the stadium situated south of the River Thames in the club's traditional catchment area, but the prestige of playing at Wembley will appeal to the Premier League champions' owner.

Prominent Arsenal blogger Andrew Mangan took a humorous swipe at Chelsea's attempt to rent Wembley, due to the old Stamford Bridge's parking of cars in the stadium, in years gone by:

Stamford Bridge is no longer suitable for a club of Chelsea's stature, with its 41,000 capacity a hindrance for the Blues' business model. It is a ground more befitting a mid-table team—but the new plans would put the team on an even footing with other clubs in the Premier League such as Manchester United and Arsenal.

The new design is an ambitious one, but Abramovich must be given credit for having such a wonderful vision for his team.

The greatest clubs in world football play in places of worship, whether that be the likes of the Camp Nou or Old Trafford, and the development of Stamford Bridge will make it one of the iconic structures in the game.