Women’s Super League champions Chelsea FC have announced a huge call on Sam Kerr’s career at the club in an extravagant social media prank.
Fans were fearing the worst when Chelsea posted an emotional video of Kerr, with the caption: “A message from @SamanthaKerr20…”
A pensive Kerr sat in front of the camera in a solemn mood as she began to reflect on her time at the club, admitting she “didn’t know how to have this conversation with you guys”.
“After four years, it’s really hard to sum up how I feel,” she began.
“My time at Chelsea has been unforgettable. Lots of great memories made, lifelong dreams, winning trophies.
“Things that will stick with me the most will be the memories shared with fans and my teammates.”
Fans were quick to respond in disbelief the club would be letting their star striker go, especially without a proper send-off.
“We didn’t even give her a farewell, you can’t do this Chelsea,” one fan pleaded.
“What a waste and what a disappointment that the club has decided not to renew her. Such a top player,” another said.
Shortly after, the video was proved to just be a cheeky joke, with Chelsea and Kerr revealing she had signed on for an extra two seasons to stay in West London until 2026.
The striker added in the comments: “Who really thought I was leaving?”
Fans vented their relief while remaining divided as to whether they wanted to see a similar social media stunt again.
“Admin don’t ever do that again,” one commented bluntly.
“Prank of the century because wow you got us,” another said.
“Fair play to the media team. They did well to fool a lot of us,” a third added.
The Blues later shared a snippet from an interview with Kerr for an episode of We Are Chelsea where she discussed the behind the scenes of the video.
She admitted she “couldn’t stop laughing” while trying to film the fakeout video.
Kerr signed for Chelsea in 2020 and penned a contract extension late 2021 which kept her at the club until the end of the 2023-24 season.
In her time at Stamford Bridge, she has won five Women’s Super League titles, three Women’s FA Cups, two FA Women’s League Cups and one FA Women’s Community Shield.
The 30-year-old has been out of action since January when she was forced to undergo season-ending surgery after suffering an ACL injury while at a training camp in Morocco.