(Football news) Chelsea Football Club’s takeover is at risk after the UK Government has become aware of attempts to restructure the deal by potential owners which would have seen Roman Abramovich receive the £1.5billion he has loaned the club through its parent company Fordstam Limited. The Russian oligarch was sanctioned by the UK government on March 10th after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the club was subsequently put on sale two months ago with proceeds going to “all the victims of the war in Ukraine".
The government has issued a special licence for the sale of Chelsea and it will not allow a sale to go through if there are any indications that Roman Abramovich may benefit from the deal. Their licence to operate is valid only till May 31st and the club could go out of business unless a sale has been sanctioned before that or the licence is extended. This is a risky position for Roman Abramovich to be in, especially for a club that holds a dear place in his heart as Chelsea FC could cease to exist if big strides aren’t taken for a potential takeover.
As things stand, a consortium led by Todd Boehly is the preferred bidder by the club and they have until the end of this week to come to an agreement and buy the club. The Premier League is already scrutinising the deal in order to assess whether the potential owners will pass the owners and directors test. The plans for the takeover have already been presented to Raine Group with an assurance that the club won’t be sold for at least a decade from the time of takeover and at least £1billion will be invested into the club and infrastructure so that Stamford Bridge can be redeveloped.
There are other bidders also in contention with Sir Martin Broughton and Steve Pagliuca’s consortium still interested in purchasing the club. If Todd Boehly’s bid is unsuccessful, both the parties stand a good chance of being the next favourites. Britain’s richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe has also been linked with a bid for Chelsea after he tabled a £4.25 billion bid to purchase the club but LA Dodgers part-owner Boehly remains the preferred choice for Raine Group and Roman Abramovich.
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