Chelsea Supporters’ Trust Urges Premier League Investigation Into Boehly’s Ties to Vivid Seats

The Chelsea Supporters’ Trust (CST) has formally called on Premier League Chief Executive Richard Masters to investigate what it calls a “clear conflict of interest” involving Chelsea co-owner and director Todd Boehly, who also sits on the board of ticket exchange and resale company Vivid Seats.

In an open letter published to the group’s website Wednesday, the CST board expressed alarm over Boehly’s reported 41% ownership stake in Vivid Seats, a platform it says is advertising unauthorized tickets to Chelsea matches and other Premier League fixtures at prices well above face value. The Premier League has publicly identified Vivid Seats as “a known unauthorised ticket website.”

“Mr Boehly’s connection with Vivid Seats is totally inappropriate and significantly undermines the efforts of Chelsea FC, The Premier League, and The Metropolitan Police to combat ticket touting,” the CST wrote. “Many of our members have described this as a ‘breach of trust’ and ‘a clear conflict of interest.’”

According to the letter, tickets for every remaining Premier League fixture this season—including Chelsea home matches—were listed on Vivid Seats, with some prices reaching “significantly inflated” levels. One example cited is a Liverpool home fixture reportedly priced at nearly £20,000.

The CST says Chelsea FC has recently intensified its efforts to deter ticket touting, updating its ticket policies and working with police to clamp down on unlawful resale. However, the supporters’ group argues that Boehly’s role with Vivid Seats directly undermines these measures. Despite repeated outreach by the CST, the letter claims, neither Boehly nor his representatives have responded, “and thousands of tickets remain for sale on the Vivid Seats website.”

The supporters’ trust is now appealing to the Premier League to launch a formal investigation, urging swift action to address what they view as a direct contradiction of the league’s campaign warning fans against purchasing from unauthorized sources.

“As a membership-led organization, we must ensure the voice of the fanbase is not ignored,” the CST wrote, adding that it hopes to meet with league officials to discuss the matter further. Neither Boehly nor Premier League representatives had publicly responded to the CST’s request at the time of publication.

A group led by Boehly purchased the London football organization three years ago in a deal valued at more than $5 billion. The billionaire seats on the board of Vivid Seats, having played a major role in the IPO of the ticket marketplace in the fall of 2021 via a merger with his SPAC – Horizon Acquisitions Corp. He also has ownership states in the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Sparks.