Why Chelsea had to keep Three sponsor on their shirts

Chelsea were forced to keep Three's logos on their shirts

Chelsea reportedly had no choice but to keep Three's logo on their shirts at the weekend - despite the telecommunications company suspending its sponsorship agreement with the club in response to the sanctioning of outgoing owner, Roman Abramovich. It was announced last week that Three had temporarily suspended its commercial deal with the club. As a result, many expected the company's logo to be removed from Chelsea's shirt in time for their Premier League game with Newcastle on Sunday. This, however, was not the case as the team emerged from the tunnel at Stamford Bridge. According to a report from the Athletic, although Three remain keen that their logo is removed from the shirts, Chelsea have been forced to keep it in order to meet the terms of the licence they received from the UK government. Despite being granted a sporting licence by the government, the operational restrictions imposed on the European champions in the wake of the Abramovich sanctions mean they are unable to print new kits. Fortunately, from a Chelsea perspective, Three are understanding of the situation the club find itself in and do not intend to take any legal action over their logo remaining on the club's shirts. It is expected that their deal with the club, which has been in place since the start of the 2020/21 season, will resume when ownership is transferred to another party. Some Chelsea supporters at Stamford Bridge on Sunday were pictured with tape covering Three's logo on their replica shirts. A flood of bad reviews against the company - all from Chelsea supporters - has also seen TrustPilot take action last week. Hyundai, Chelsea's current sleeve partner, have also suspended their deal with the club. Despite reports that Nike were also considering stepping away from their long-term kit supplying deal, it is now thought the US sportswear giant will stand by the club. Related links:

• Jamie Carragher slams ‘hypocritical’ Chelsea fans following Tuchel comments
• Saudi consortium make £2.7bn bid to buy Chelsea
• Thomas Tuchel admits he is uncertain about future after Chelsea turmoil