On Friday, the previous owner, the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, finally agreed on the sale with US investors. According to the British media, the price is 4.25 billion pounds (approx. 5 billion euros).
The English Premier League and the British and Portuguese governments had previously granted the necessary approvals for the takeover. The proceeds from the sale are to be used for humanitarian purposes – specifically for war victims in Ukraine – and will not benefit the owner of the club either directly or indirectly. The previous owner Roman Abramovich is on the British and EU sanctions lists because of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. The club’s future was at times in limbo with the sanctions imposed on Abramovich.
Sanctions could now be lifted
According to Chelsea, there were more than 250 inquiries from potential buyers. In the end, three of twelve “credible offers” remained. The consortium around Boehly stood out from the others, also because those involved had already shown their strength through their commitment as owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team and the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Sparks basketball teams, it said in a statement of the Chelsea board.