Chelsea FC has confirmed that terms have been agreed for Todd Boehly’s group to purchase the club from Roman Abramovich following his sanction earlier this year.
Boehly’s consortium, which is also led by Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter and Hansjoerg Wyss, has to now be approved by the UK Government and the Premier League before the takeover can be completed.
The club revealed in a statement: “Of the total investment being made, £2.5 billion will be applied to purchase the shares in the Club and such proceeds will be deposited into a frozen UK bank account with the intention to donate 100% to charitable causes as confirmed by Roman Abramovich.
“UK Government approval will be required for the proceeds to be transferred from the frozen UK bank account.”
Chelsea revealed that a deal is expected to complete in late May, and the proposed new owners have promised to commit £1.75 billion in further investment for the benefit of the top-flight club.
This includes investments in Stamford Bridge, the Academy, the Women’s Team and Kingsmeadow and continued funding for the Chelsea Foundation.
Furthermore, Chelsea had a deadline of 31 May to find a new bidder, and with the Raine Group having chosen its preferred bidder, the government can issue a separate licence to allow the club to be sold.
Last month, Martin Broughton’s offer looked strong as Lewis Hamilton and Serena Williams put forward millions of pounds towards to become the new owners of Chelsea. Hamilton stated that he wanted to place a focus on diversity and inclusion, as well as the club’s local community.
Around the same time, further bidders, the Ricketts family, released an eight-point plan which included promising to never participate in a European Super League.
The group, however, faced backlash and saw protests from fans against their bid due to reports of Islamophobic emails sent by Joe Ricketts three years ago. These fans demonstrated their resilience online, as well as putting on a demonstration at Stamford Bridge.On the other hand, reports from the Telegraph have claimed that ‘ministers are yet to be fully satisfied’ that Abramovich will not profit from the sale.
