BREAKING: Chelsea officially announce Todd Boehly takeover is ‘COMPLETED’ as Roman Abramovich Era ends
Finally, Todd Boehly’s consortium have completed their takeover of Chelsea, succeeding Roman Abramovich as owners of the club.
However, Chelsea announced their preferred bidder to take over was Boehly’s consortium back in April, with Stephen Pagliuca and Sir Martin Broughton’s groups missing out.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe made an 11th-hour bid, which was rejected after not following the sale process, bypassing Raine Group and being submitted directly to Chelsea.
Boehly’s consortium have officially been confirmed as the new owners of Chelsea, beating off the competition to complete a deal worth £4.25 billion.
The group were confirmed to have passed the Premier League Owners’ and Directors’ Test and the UK Government approved the takeover of Chelsea, with the Blues confirming the deal in an official announcement.
They wrote: “Roman Abramovich has completed the sale of Chelsea Football Club and related companies to an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
“This sale process commenced on 2 March, when Mr. Abramovich announced his intention to sell the Club after 19 successful years of ownership. In selling the Club, Mr. Abramovich stipulated that the new owner must be a good steward of the Club, the net proceeds of the sale must be donated to charity, and that he would not seek the repayment of loans made to affiliates of the Club.
“Following this announcement, the Board of Directors and senior staff at the Club immediately commenced work on the sale transaction. Raine, a global merchant bank chosen by the owner to run the sale process, has significant expertise and experience advising premium sports clubs on mergers and acquisitions and advised the owner and the Club in the process.”
The sale was thrown into doubt previously due to the lack of assurances from Abramovich regarding where the funds from the transaction would go, with the UK Government keen to ensure that the Russian-born does not benefit.
These concerns have been squashed as ministers approved the sale, with Boehly now leading the Blues forward for a minimum of 10 years after Chelsea added clause in which sees guaranteed ownership until 2032.
The restrictions on the club have been lifted as Chelsea are once again able to sell merchandise, tickets and engage in transfer negotiations.