Why don't Chelsea or Sunderland have a shirt sponsor?

Chelsea and Sunderland are the only Premier League clubs who will start the 2026-27 season without a matchday shirt sponsor.

Chelsea say it is normal for front-of-shirt sponsorship negotiations to take time, and point to Manchester United's TeamViewer agreement as one of the few comparable deals in the market. That partnership also took time to negotiate.

There is no doubt that inconsistency on the pitch has affected Chelsea's commercial prospects. The club expected to qualify for the Champions League on a regular basis but have underperformed relative to those ambitions.

A £65m sponsorship figure was widely quoted by industry insiders, but a fee of £50m to £55m per season is understood to be closer to the figure Chelsea are seeking.

However, achieving that valuation is more difficult without the exposure that comes with Champions League football.

According to The Sponsor, which publishes an annual Premier League fair market value index for front-of-shirt and sleeve sponsorships, Chelsea's projected value fell from £50.3m to £33.6m at the end of last season.

Maintaining a high-value sponsorship deal is a long-term strategy, because it affects the overall valuation of the club. Chelsea are therefore focused on securing the right long-term agreement.

Signing a cut-price deal would be relatively straightforward, and could improve the club's short-term financial position.

However, Chelsea's 15-year Nike agreement, worth £900m in total or £60m per season, is now considered to be below market value and no longer compares favourably with deals secured by some of Europe's leading clubs.

That is why Chelsea are proceeding cautiously in these negotiations and continue to have a blank space on their shirts.

It will be the fourth season in a row that the Blues have started without a front-of-short sponsor.

Last season, artificial intelligence and industrial software company IFS sponsored the club in the final three months.

Similar short-term deals have been agreed in the previous seasons, with Infinite Athlete and Damac sponsoring Xabi Alonso's side in recent campaigns.

Elsewhere, Sunderland are yet to find a new front-of-shirt sponsor for this season following the end of their deal with gambling company W88.

Starting this year, the Premier League prohibits clubs from advertising a gambling company as their primary front-of-shirt sponsor.

In July, the Sunderland Echo reported that the club will confirm a new sponsor in due course, but negotiations remain ongoing.

BBC Sport have approached Sunderland for comment.