Chelsea issue statement as thousands of fans affected by issue as apology made by club

Chelsea issued a statement during their first Premier League game of the season after supporters complained about a major issue.

The Club World Cup and Conference League winners returned to Stamford Bridge with a clash against FA Cup and Community Shield champions Crystal Palace on Sunday.

But on social media, a plethora of fans complained about problems with the club's new digital ticket system.

Much like many clubs, Chelsea have scrapped physical tickets - meaning fans have to download the Chelsea app on their mobile device and activate their ticket beforehand.

However, the system encountered many difficulties in its first Premier League game, with many reporting disappearing tickets.

The system appeared to go down for around 30 minutes ahead of the 2pm kick-off, causing delays and large queues outside the ground.

The club had advertised a digital ticket assistance hub at the Stamford Bridge Hotel.

Chelsea fans were stuck outside Stamford Bridge prior to their first game. Image: X/@ConnCFC

One fan on X fumed: "All the fans struggling to get in for the game. Do better @ChelseaFC."

A second said: "Ticket chaos @ChelseaFC due to no QR code on the app. Completely ruining the match day experience."

A third vented: "Well that’s the digital tickets off to a great start, queue all the way onto the street from the stadium for help as the QR code isn’t appearing on the app to get in."

After kick-off, Chelsea posted a short statement where they acknowledged the issues and said they would work to make sure a repeat scenario does not occur for upcoming home games.

On their official website, Chelsea wrote: "The club is aware there were some issues with the ticketing system for approximately 30 minutes, between 12.30pm and 1pm, before today’s Premier League match against Crystal Palace. We will do everything we can to ensure this does not happen again.

"We apologise to supporters who were affected by this and thank them for their patience. The issue was resolved, and all ticketed supporters were admitted to the stadium safely in time for kick-off."

Chelsea's next home game is a derby clash against West London rivals Fulham at lunchtime on Saturday 30 August, following a trip to West Ham next Friday.