Russian businessman Roman Abramovich said on Wednesday he would sell Chelsea Football Club 19 years after buying it and put the team on a path to sporting glory, promising to donate the sale proceeds to the Ukrainian war victims. Last weekend, Chelsea boss Roman Abramovich tried to launch a plan to give up some control by announcing plans to hand over the “management and care” of the club to his foundation managers. To maintain ownership of Chelsea. Things were moving fast, with Abramovich announcing on Saturday that he would entrust the management and care of Chelsea to his charitable foundation.
Roman Abramovich, who relinquished his leadership of Chelsea after Russia invaded Ukraine and feared sanctions from the British government, said the club’s sale was “in the interests of fans, staff, sponsors and partners”. Roman Abramovich had announced that he intends to donate the profits from any sale – which he owes £1.514bn on when he bought Chelsea Football Club in 2003 for £140m – to victims of the Ukraine conflict. Sources have told ESPN that Roman Abramovich is seeking around £3bn ($2.24bn) for the Blues. Still, his negotiating power is severely limited by the timing of his decision, apparently by the kingdom’s government increasing pressure. Assets of prominent Russian individuals linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime following the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Russian businessman Roman Abramovich is increasingly demanding sanctions following Russia’s invasion of his country; the metals giant said in a statement that the sale was in the best interests of Chelsea Football Club.
Roman Abramovich, a Russian oligarch, is believed to be a close confidant of President Vladimir Putin. He is reportedly in a rush to get rid of assets before sanctions could be imposed on him. Russian businessman Roman Abramovich said he would not take out loans he gave the club that is repayable, and the sale would not be expedited.
Chelsea owes Abramovich £1.5bn but says they won’t seek repayment of any loans, although they are likely to want a seat in the region of £3bn for the club they bought in 2003. This is reported by the Daily Telegraph, which says that Abramovich may find it challenging to earn that amount, even though he previously turned down offers worth 2.2 billion for the Blues. Whether Chelsea is worth that much or not, potential buyers may think they can buy the club on the cheap, though Abramovich said he wouldn’t sell quickly.
Under him, Chelsea has won two Champions League titles in addition to the Club World Cup earlier this year. Under Roman Abramovich, Chelsea has won every trophy they could have won. It is doubtful that the Abu Dhabi consortium would have entered football with Manchester City in 2008 without Abramovich’s influence in West London. The acquisition has helped change the landscape of England playing with Chelsea FC, freed from the shackles of Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool.