Todd Boehly and his consortium’s takeover of Chelsea FC remains on track despite reports earlier this week claiming a major hitch in the deal. The soon-to-be owner of Chelsea, and his co-owners, have also received the all-clear from the Premier League.
After another set of nervy days for the Chelsea faithful, the news about the impending takeover of the club is positive again. Rumors emerged earlier this week that the takeover process involving a consortium of investors is under the threat of falling apart due to disagreements between the UK government and Roman Abramovich regarding some key issues – but those have eased since.
Firstly, the English media understands that Todd Boehly, the face of the consortium bidding to buy Chelsea from Abramovich, and other key members of the ownership group, are set to receive their approvals from the Premier League.
The league runs an Owners’ and Directors’ Test whenever the possibility of a change of ownership arises, looking at things that would potentially prohibit an individual or a set of individuals from taking charge of the club. Offenses such as match-fixing involvement and breaches of regulations are looked at, but reports claim that the league finds Boehly and Co fit to take over Chelsea.
Despite that, reservations remained on the government’s side over where the proceeds from the sale would end up; Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK and cannot profit from the sale of his asset. To that end, the Russian had promised to donate the money received from the deal to the victims of the war in Ukraine – a stance he reiterated when the last set of rumors emerged. However, officials feared that the oligarch – or his associates – could still access the funds via a trust in Cyprus.
The latest news coming out of the UK indicates that the government has found a resolution with Abramovich’s representatives and the sale can proceed as planned. Former UNICEF director Mike Penrose was brought in to establish the foundation that would hold the money received from the Chelsea sale for the benefit of the victims of the Russia-Ukraine war.
“The UK Government could create the world’s leading humanitarian foundation. And I’m prepared to stand up in front of any Government committee, panel, anything, and attest to the neutrality of how this is being created. I hope they see fit to allow it to go ahead, and I hope they allow us to get the money to the front line in Ukraine very quickly,”
he said.
Chelsea are operating under a special license, at the moment, which expires on May 31.
