Chelsea Make Surprise Changes to Club Badge Ahead of 2026–27 Season

The Blues are ready for a season of change after several years of turmoil.

The Blues are hoping to have a markedly improved 2026–27. | Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Chelsea have surprised fans by updating their social media accounts with a redesigned version of their club badge.

The Blues made the switch to their current badge in 2005, shortly after the arrival of former owner Roman Abramovich, making drastic changes to a design that had been synonymous with the club for the previous 19 years.

This time around, the changes have not been so dramatic and have not yet been made official. While the club website still carries the usual badge, eagle-eyed fans noticed Chelsea’s social media accounts all shifted to a new-look logo.

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All the Changes in Chelsea’s New Badge

Spot the difference. | @chelseafc/Instagram, Visionhaus/Getty Images

On first glance, there are no major differences in Chelsea’s new design, with a handful of minor tweaks designed to modernize the badge.

It is a deeper shade of blue compared to Chelsea’s existing crest, while a number of borders have been removed. The inner circle and the letters are no longer surrounding by a yellow outline, while the white borders around the red balls and roses have also been removed.

The font for the words on the badge has also been changed to match the font used on matchday kits last season.

Perhaps most notable is the removal of the shadows behind the lion, which now sits as a simple two-dimensional image.

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Questions Mount Over New-Look Chelsea

The CFC LDN branding is far more common these days. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

The Chelsea badge has actually become increasingly uncommon around Stamford Bridge.

In the 2025–26 season, Chelsea introduced ‘CFC LDN’ branding, with the two words separated by the lion that stands at the heart of the club badge. The reason for this has never been explained, with many sceptics accusing the unpopular owners of attempting to change the club’s identity.

The CFC LDN image was conceptualized as far back as December 2023, one year after BlueCo arrived at Stamford Bridge. Reports have claimed Chelsea are simply attempting to lean into their relationship with London and become synonymous with the English capital.

That lion will be used as the badge on Chelsea’s home shirt for the upcoming season in place of the usual crest, and that is also expected to be the case for the away kit, which has not yet been formally released but has leaked online.

As was the case with this past season, the third shirt is also expected to avoid using the badge in favor of a throwback crest. The 2025–26 third kit used the badge inherited by Abramovich, while this upcoming release is expected to go even further back into the vault by bringing back a badge used during the early 90s.

Should the leaks all prove factual, it would mean none of Chelsea’s three kits for the upcoming season will include the current badge, which has only contributed to fears of a possible rebrand.

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