Chelsea Football Club was founded on 10 March 1905 in west London, established by businessman Gus Mears who built Stamford Bridge stadium first and then created a club to play in it. The early decades brought modest success — the club's first major silverware came with the 1955 First Division title. Chelsea's rise to prominence accelerated during the Roman Abramovich era (2003-2022), when the Russian businessman's investment transformed the club into a perennial title contender. José Mourinho's "Special One" sides won back-to-back Premier Leagues in 2004-05 and 2005-06.
The club's defining triumph came in May 2012, when Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League for the first time, defeating Bayern Munich on penalties in the German club's home stadium. Roberto Di Matteo's interim side included Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, John Terry and Petr Čech — the spine of a generation. A second European Cup followed in 2021 under Thomas Tuchel, beating Manchester City in Porto. Chelsea also lifted the UEFA Europa League in 2013 and 2019, completing a rare set of major European honours.
Following Abramovich's forced sale in 2022 amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the BlueCo consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital took over. The new ownership has overseen a dramatic squad rebuild and won the UEFA Europa Conference League in 2024-25 along with the FIFA Club World Cup in 2025. Known as "The Blues" and based at Stamford Bridge in Fulham, Chelsea remain one of England's most decorated clubs with six league titles, eight FA Cups, and trophies in all three current UEFA competitions.