Roman Abramovich insists his sale of Chelsea will not be fast-tracked — but his actions over a remarkable few days point to a man in a hurry.
From his attempt to hand over the running of the club on Saturday, to last night’s dramatic announcement that he was ending his 19-year ownership of the Blues, there is a clear sense of a man acting on the hoof.
On Saturday night, sources close to him were adamant his commitment remained. Now potential buyers have been instructed to submit official bids by March 15.
It is not difficult to see why Abramovich is acting so erratically, with growing calls for him to be sanctioned for his association with Vladimir Putin following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer added his weight to the argument during Prime Minister’s questions yesterday.
It is claimed that the oligarch is selling his London property portfolio — but nothing compares to his passion project, Chelsea.
The £1.5bn in personal loans he has made to the club point to his genuine love for it. He celebrated like a giddy fan as they won the Champions League in Porto last May — and as recently as last month, he was determined to be in Abu Dhabi to see them complete the full set of major trophies by lifting the Club World Cup.
It is clear he did not want to relinquish ownership. But that stance has given way to an apparent urgency to sell up.
By writing off the debt, he should have made Chelsea a far more appealing prospect to buyers like Hansjorg Wyss, who raised concerns over the monies owed to Abramovich. Still, a valuation believed to be £4bn is considered too high and the 55-year-old is likely to have to compromise — especially if a sale is to go through quickly.
Potential buyers would point to the size of the stadium as a major stumbling block, due to limitations on matchday revenue.
It is estimated rebuilding Stamford Bridge would cost in the region of £2.2bn, which is a significant increase on the initial investment — while the freehold, which belongs to the non-profit plc Chelsea Pitch Owners, is another potential factor in any negotiations.
As it stands, Abramovich has not been sanctioned, and his promise to donate net proceeds to victims of the conflict may help his cause.
But pressure is growing on the UK Government to act — and it is hard to separate those calls from Abramovich’s recent actions.
How sanctions would impact on any sale is unclear, but it is possible it could go ahead even if his assets were frozen.
A Treasury document from December 2020 states special exemption licences can be granted to companies owned or controlled by individuals added to the UK’s sanctions list.
The grounds for granting such licences include a situation where a deal has been struck “prior to the date of designation” and special “humanitarian” circumstances.
What is less clear is what might happen to the proceeds of the sale in the event that Abramovich is added to a list of nine Russian individuals so far targeted by the Government.
One official said that while the sale might be granted a licence to proceed, the funds from the deal would likely be frozen meaning that while proceeds could be paid in, they might not be released.
