being the name they are today and it is not something you
can just replicate," said group financial director Nick
Humby.
"You can go back to the Munich Air Disaster in 1958 and the
European Cup win in 1968, through to the sustained success
under Sir Alex Ferguson over the last 13 years.
"It is these factors which make us such a popular club and
that is the reason why global companies such as Nike and
Vodafone want to be our partners.
"Chelsea have the money and have bought some good players
but they are at the start of a very long trail. In the short-
term they will have trouble matching the kind of deals we
have done and it is something they may never be able to
achieve even in the long-term."