Gochok Dome: Enough to build Europe's first dedicated stadium... Chelsea's 'crazy 231 billion won' investment secured the acquisition of Morgan Rogers

*This content was translated by AI.

The cost is enough to build a new dome stadium like Gochok Sky Dome and still have hundreds of billions of won left over. It could also cover the fixed salaries for Birmingham City's first-team squad, where Korean midfielder Baek Seung-ho plays, for more than five years. This is the amount Chelsea poured into acquiring just Morgan Rogers.

Chelsea announced the acquisition of Rogers on the 22nd (Korean time) via its club website and official social media channels. Aston Villa, Rogers' former club, also reported the same news.

According to UK Sky Sports, Rogers signed a six-year contract with Chelsea. The deal includes an option for a one-year extension, potentially extending the contract duration to up to seven years.

Both clubs did not disclose the specific transfer fee. However, Reuters reported that "British media have stated Rogers' transfer fee reached 117 million pounds (approximately 231 billion won)," adding that "this makes Rogers the most expensive British player in history."

Previously, Manchester City of the English Premier League (EPL) paid up to 116 million pounds (approximately 230 billion won) to acquire Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliott Anderson from their club. However, Rogers immediately surpassed Anderson's record. This summer alone, the record for the highest transfer fee for a British player has been broken twice.

117 million pounds is an astronomical sum that is difficult to grasp by its figure alone. However, when compared with construction costs of major stadiums domestically and abroad or player salaries in football clubs, Chelsea's investment becomes even more strikingly unprecedented.

First, Rogers' transfer fee exceeds the cost of building one new Gochok Sky Dome. According to Seoul City, a total of 194.8 billion won was invested in constructing the Gochok Sky Dome, which was completed in 2015. Comparing only the nominal amounts, the 231 billion won transfer fee for Rogers would leave more than 36 billion won after building one Gochok Dome. The Gochok Dome is Korea's first dome stadium and currently serves as the home ground for the professional baseball team Kiwoom Heroes.

The scale is also astonishing when compared to player squad budgets in English football. According to Capello, a website specializing in player salaries and transfer fees, Birmingham's first-team squad annual fixed salary total for the 2026-2027 season is estimated at 22.15 million pounds (approximately 44 billion won).

Rogers' transfer fee is more than five times the one-year fixed salary of Birmingham's first-team squad. In other words, the money spent to acquire Rogers alone could cover the base salaries for the entire Birmingham squad for over five years.

The same applies when compared to a women's football-only stadium being promoted by Brighton & Hove Albion in England. Brighton is pushing to build Europe's first dedicated women's football stadium. According to the UK BBC, the estimated project cost is approximately 80 million pounds (about 158 billion won). With Rogers' transfer fee, even after completing the stadium, 37 million pounds and hundreds of billions of won would remain.

In fact, Rogers has set several new records with this transfer. Not only did he become the most expensive British player ever, but he also broke Chelsea's club record for the highest transfer fee. In 2023, Chelsea paid 115 million pounds (approximately 228 billion won) to acquire Ecuadorian midfielder Moises Caicedo, who was playing for Brighton at the time. However, just three years later, Rogers surpassed Caicedo to become the most expensive player in Chelsea's history.

Rogers also ranks second on the all-time EPL transfer fee list. Liverpool paid Bayer Leverkusen 116.5 million pounds (approximately 230 billion won) last year to acquire German national team midfielder Florian Wirtz. Rogers' transfer fee is 500,000 pounds higher than that.

The all-time highest EPL transfer fee record is held by Liverpool striker Alexander Isak. Isak recorded a valuation of 125 million pounds (approximately 248 billion won) when he transferred from Newcastle to Liverpool last year.

Through Chelsea, Rogers stated, "I am truly delighted. For me, Chelsea is the largest club in London and the team I have always admired since childhood."

He continued, "I have great expectations for the project with the new manager, the current squad, and the direction the club is heading. That is why I came to Chelsea. I want to start as soon as possible," expressing his anticipation.

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*This content was translated by AI.