Chelsea bidders have been told the sale of the club will be progressed rapidly once they have submitted final offers on April 11.
US merchant bank Raine Group want to present their preferred choice to the Government as early as April 18, ahead of completion before the end of the season.
The next two weeks are vital to that decision, with the shortlisted quartet of candidates set to meet key Chelsea figures to investigate the state of the club, as well as put forward their own visions – including plans to renovate Stamford Bridge.
Sir Martin Broughton, the Ricketts family, Todd Boehly and Stephen Pagliuca have all received detailed instructions about the next stage of the process.
Raine will give them access to Chelsea’s full accounts and also the opportunity to submit increased offers before deciding on which bid to take forward.
All four candidates are expected to travel to London to hold face-to-face talks with chairman Bruce Buck, director Marina Granovskaia, chief executive Guy Lawrence and potentially first-team manager Thomas Tuchel.
Raine had initially indicated a deal could be struck by the end of April, but they want to bring that date forward, with the club, the Government and the Premier League all eager to push through a sale in the wake of the sanctions placed on Roman Abramovich for his ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Broughton has vowed to continue to invest in the first team to keep Chelsea competing at the top level of European football and also promised to put fans at the heart of decision-making.
The Ricketts family have the backing of US hedge fund manager Ken Griffin – worth around £20billion – and are committed to rebuilding the stadium.
Boehly has indicated his takeover would see Chelsea become pioneers in fan involvement.
Pagliuca’s intentions are not yet clear, with the part-owner of the Boston Celtics and Atalanta a surprise addition to the shortlist.
Once a bidder has been presented to the Treasury they will then have to pass the Premier League’s owners and directors test, which has been processed in as quickly as 10 days in the past.
