The British government on Wednesday gave the green light to complete the acquisition of Chelsea Football Club in favor of a group led by American businessman Todd Bohle, the sports minister said.
“Last night the government issued a license to sell the Chelsea Football Club,” UK Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sports Nadine Doris said on Twitter.
“Given the sanctions we have imposed on people associated with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and the bloody invasion of Ukraine, the long-term future of the club can only be secured through a new owner” who will replace the Russian Roman Abramovich, who decided to sell club after 19 years of buying it.
The British government’s decision comes a day after the Premier League board of directors approved the transfer of ownership of the London club to Todd Boehle’s group, who reached an agreement on May 7 to buy last season’s Champions League champions for £4.25bn ($) . 5.3 billion).
“The Premier League board of directors today approved a proposal for the acquisition of Chelsea Football Club by the Todd Boehle-Clearlake consortium,” the Premier League said in a statement on Tuesday.
But the statement added: “The purchase remains subject to the issuance by the (British) government of the necessary sales license and the satisfactory completion of the final stages of the transaction.”
Abramovich, who bought Chelsea in 2003 and won five local league titles and two Champions League titles with him, put the London club up for sale in early March, just days before the British government took action against him. sanctions against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of London. Ukraine.
But the sale was delayed due to government fears that the profits from the operation could end up in Abramovich’s treasury.
There were fears that the takeover could fall through because Chelsea’s parent company Fordstam Limited owed £1.5 billion to Camberley International Investments, a Jersey-based company suspected of links to Abramovich.
However, the sports minister assured on Wednesday that he was “confident that the proceeds from the sale will not benefit Roman Abramovich or others under sanctions” and thanked “everyone, especially the officials who have worked tirelessly so that the club can continue to play and complete this sale and protect fans and society at large.”