The legendary Emma Hayes, at the head of the Chelsea women's team since 2012, will leave London at the end of the season.
The Englishwoman, made knight of the Order of the British Empire in 2016, will take the reins of the American selection.
According to The Athletic, Chelsea are aiming to replace Sonia Bompastor, the coach of Olympique Lyonnais women, former international with 156 caps.
The Frenchwoman, aged 43, has coached the Rhone club since April 2021. In less than three years, she has won a Champions League, two Championships and a Coupe de France, but also two Trophées des champions.
OL women are on track to retain their French crown since they are 10 points ahead of their runner-up in the first division, PSG.
The Lyonnaises also qualified for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, during which they will challenge Benfica.
Chelsea make contract offer to Lyon head coach Sonia Bompastor to replace Emma Hayes who leaves for the #USWNT at end of season.
Nothing finalized yet and negotiations ongoing.
Bompastor's contract with Lyon expires in 2025. @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/Szo4yZRm7W
— Charlotte Harpur (@charlotteharpur) February 14, 2024
The Athletic announced this Wednesday that Chelsea would have offered a contract to the French technician, 43 years old.
This is linked until 2025 to Lyon.
For the moment, no agreement has been found but negotiations are therefore well underway.
Under the leadership of Emma Hayes, Chelsea have become one of the leaders in women's football.
The London club has won the last four English championships.
This season again, he sits in first place in the rankings.
Symbol of the growth of women's football across the Channel, Chelsea is also gaining more and more influence on a continental scale.
The Blues thus reached the final of the Champions League in 2021. But they lost heavily against Barça (4-0).
Also read “She is the DNA of OL”… Sonia Bompastor, the architect behind Lyonnaises’ new European coronation
An arrival of Sonia Bompastor, a young coach with an already well-stocked track record, would correspond to the ambitions of the English club.
The Frenchwoman could find two former Lyon players there: Catarina Macario and Kadeisha Buchanan.