The last jigsaw puzzle pieces have fallen into place for the Chelsea sale to be officially signed off and publicised by the club.
Earlier this morning, the UK Government confirmed that Todd Boehly’s consortium had been approved as the new Chelsea owners. All that remained was to obtain permission from the European Union due to Roman Abramovich’s Portuguese citizenship.
According to The Telegraph, this has now been validated and accepted by Europe, and Chelsea is drafting their official release, which may even be written by Boehly!
According to the article, Boehly has secured final approval for his takeover from the government, the Premier League, and Europe, with Chelsea now preparing an announcement on the club’s change of ownership.
This is big news as this was the final thing Chelsea needed to get passed off before the final official deal can be announced.
Abramovich, a Russian-Israeli billionaire, listed Chelsea for sale on March 2, a week after Vladimir Putin’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine.
The buyout ends his 19-year ownership of the club, and Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Boehly will become Chelsea’s controlling owner, despite the fact that California investment firm Clearlake Capital will retain the majority shareholding.
According to reports, the new owners intend to invest £1.75 billion in the club, bringing the total buyout value to £4.25 billion.
Chelsea has been unable to sell, sign, or offer new contracts since Abramovich was sanctioned, but those restrictions will be eliminated once the takeover is completed.
A government statement said: “The steps today will secure the future of this important cultural asset and protect fans and the wider football community. We have been in discussions with relevant international partners for necessary licences required and we thank them for all their cooperation.”
Boehly’s straightforward refusal to entertain any diversions has been critical to the Connecticut billionaire’s successful conquest of Chelsea.
The Boehly group has eventually beaten off all contenders to take over at Stamford Bridge, 85 days after Roman Abramovich officially put the Blues up for sale.
Whereas competing bidders were either forced to fight fires or veered off course, Boehly never let his iron focus waver.
The laser targeting of Eldridge Industries co-founder Boehly and Clearlake Capital co-founder Behdad Eghbali created the bedrock of the winning consortium!
