Roman Abramovich plans to sell Chelsea | SOLD for £4.25BN

TheReligion said:
I think that’s fair and don’t disagree.

Their recent recruitment hasn’t been great when you look at it. Especially when you consider players like Livramento, Tomori, Abraham and Guehi have been cast aside and cost them nothing.

Will Gallagher and Billy G get a chance?
Click to expand...

Gallagher will because of his relentless motor. I don't know that Tuchel has ever been wowed by Billy the way that Lampard was.
 
A solid example of why Boehly's group see this as a good investment.

 
Zaphod2319 said:
A solid example of why Boehly's group see this as a good investment.

Click to expand...


I moved to Florida and I haven’t met a single person who cares for baseball. It’s about as popular as InterMiami. Like no one cares. Mention Football, Basketball and to a lesser extent Ice hockey and even tennis, then you’ll get people talking.
 
SirReginald said:
I moved to Florida and I haven’t met a single person who cares for baseball. It’s about as popular as InterMiami. Like no one cares. Mention Football, Basketball and to a lesser extent Ice hockey and even tennis, then you’ll get people talking.
Click to expand...

Are you going to the Chelsea Arsenal game in Orlando on July 23rd? We have tickets.
 
WeePat said:
Looks like old news this. Not sure why this is being reported as if its fresh concern.
Click to expand...
Kind of, but it's the government providing some added clarity to Roman's statements via Chelsea's communication channels about the debt. This is what the BBC's government insider stated (from that BBC article):
Two big sticking points remain - where exactly the proceeds of the sale will be held, and what legal guarantees government will be given about the money going to good causes.

Essentially, despite committing to all proceeds going to good causes in public, Abramovich seems unwilling to give the same legal commitments, which would have backed up his public statements of about a week ago, that in the deal neither he nor his affiliates could basically try and stake a claim to that unpaid debt between Fordstam and Camberley.

A deal which would allow the cash to be diverted during the deal would be a breach of sanctions and is seen as a red line for ministers.
Click to expand...

Basically, they need legal assurances from Roman and his associates to back up the public statements that he made last week (and still maintain to this day).


EDIT: Summary of the Ziegler article:
  • The British government is concerned that part of the £2.6b for the sale will go to Camberley International Investments as part of the loan payback from Chelsea's parent company, Fordstam
    • Note: Camberley is owned by a trust fund in Cyprus, which benefits Abramovich's children
  • Sources close to Abramovich dispute that and state that none of the money will go to Camberley.
  • The British government, however, hasn't received any legal assurance from Abramovich, so they still suspect that the money can end up at Camberley and, eventually, in Abramovich's control.
Basically, the government's trying to influence the sale and ensure that none of the money goes to Abramovich instead of trusting the parties involved in the sale to do their thing.
 
Last edited:
Hmm im skeptical about this report tonight, still expect a sale to go through
 
Simon Jordan's words ring alarms too, said on TalkSport few weeks back he could see a scenario where the govt assert control over chelsea essentially, and sell the club themselves.... which may explain Jim Ratcliffe speaking to his tory friends before bidding so late....
 
WeePat said:
Looks like old news this. Not sure why this is being reported as if its fresh concern.
Click to expand...

It appears as though this is being reported because what Roman is saying publicly and what he is actually willing to commit to legally are two different things, when it was first reported he denied it and said he was happy to write off the debt but it appears that is not what he is saying behind closed doors. It could be a storm in a teacup but without him being willing to allow the money to stay in escrow and remove Camberley from the deal it seems the Government will not sign off. It is probably a high stakes game of chicken but I don't get any sense that the Government are going to back down and in the meantime Roman is letting the club twist in the wind.
 
Billy Bullcrap said:
Regarding the BBC, I think you’ve been away from the UK for too long
Click to expand...

I meant more in terms of the sports writers. They don't have to chase clicks so they rarely break any stories but they typically don't bother to write anything unless they have rock solid sources. Twitter ITKs make stuff up as do the tabloid media but I don't recall any recent examples of the BBC lot doing that.
 
WeePat said:
Looks like old news this. Not sure why this is being reported as if its fresh concern.
Click to expand...

Presumably because the government think it plays well for them as a story.

A deal of this size with a sanctioned individual involved was never going to be anything but complicated.
 
ZolaWasMagic said:
Click to expand...

Here's where I see a big gap in this whole process (as highligted by Ben Jacobs):


Basically, the sale can be completed, and the money can be frozen in a British account. However, what happens to the money afterwards? That's the murky part of this whole process. Abramovich has basically told them that they should trust him in eventually giving away all of the sale money to "war victims", but I think the government wants more legal assurances before entrusting Abramovich's foundation with the money (including how it'll end up there, which is where Camberley comes into play).

We know that Abramovich won't block the sale, and that's good for Chelsea. What happens afterwards remains to be seen, but as long as the money remains frozen until then, I guess that shouldn't affect Chelsea, overall.
 
Last edited:
mazhar13 said:
Here's where I see a big gap in this whole process (as highligted by Ben Jacobs):


Basically, the sale can be completed, and the money can be frozen in a British account. However, what happens to the money afterwards? That's the murky part of this whole process. Abramovich has basically told them that they should trust him in eventually giving away all of the sale money to "war victims", but I think the government want more legal assurances before entrusting Abramovich's foundation with the money (including how it'll end up there, which is where Camberley comes into play).

We know that Abramovich won't block the sale, and that's good for Chelsea. What happens afterwards remains to be seen, but as long as the money remains frozen until then, I guess that shouldn't affect Chelsea, overall.
Click to expand...


The above sums it up with the caveat that at present the Government cannot complete the sale without Roman signing off and vice versa. If Roman won't give the legal assurances they are looking for that is where the Simon Jordan scenario then comes into play where the Government could seize the club and freeze Roman out of the process altogether but that would delay matters and could result in a less optimal result for the club as the Government likely won't give a stuff about whether the new owners will invest or not.
 
If this was Manchester United, we would’ve been relegated as extra punishment.
 
ZolaWasMagic said:
Click to expand...


What do you expect them to say..?

Who knows what Abramovich's intentions are. Wouldn't be surprised to see the sale fall apart. Not exactly sure what would happen then.

Being owned by US private equity could end up being a bullet dodged long term in anycase.
 
Mb194dc said:
What do you expect them to say..?

Who knows what Abramovich's intentions are. Wouldn't be surprised to see the sale fall apart. Not exactly sure what would happen then.

Being owned by US private equity could end up being a bullet dodged long term in anycase.
Click to expand...
Its not going to fall through. Of course it could but it really isnt going to happen....

The club would have sought assurances of the sale going through successfully before releasing the statement confirming the sale terms were agreed.
 
ZolaWasMagic said:
Its not going to fall through. Of course it could but it really isnt going to happen....

The club would have sought assurances of the sale going through successfully before releasing the statement confirming the sale terms were agreed.
Click to expand...

But now the Government are seeking assurances that Roman is going to keep his word and seemingly not getting them. I agree it is most likely it will still go through but the club statement is not legally binding and if everyone was assuming Roman was going to sign off on the sale proceeds being frozen and Camberley being cut out of the loop and he is now refusing to do so then it is possible the sale falls through or the terms significantly change.
 
Shock horror, Russian oligarch with close ties to murderous regime isn’t legally committing to giving away his favourite play thing………….
 
They should do it in two steps:

1. Abramovich sells Chelsea to the government for one pound only.

2. Then the government sells the club and distributes the money to "good causes".
 
Not really a legal mind, but if the government forces things through, when all of this eventually subsides what stops Roman from taking the government to court?
 
pcaming said:
Not really a legal mind, but if the government forces things through, when all of this eventually subsides what stops Roman from taking the government to court?
Click to expand...
I think he might tbh. But a long long time from now
 
It “could” fall through if enough people in the government, sporting bodies, etc lie, cheat and steal. What is to stop them from claiming the fictitious problem exists until after AT LEAST Chelsea passes a deadline that disqualified them from Europe.I fully expect this to happen. A great deal of pressure put on the team that had nothing to do with sanctioning Abramovich or supporting Ukraine was always motivated with this goal in mind.

And it very nearly worked.

The ludicrous idea is that he would specifically ask for the loan to be repaid. That involves coordination inside a banking system he has no access to. If he actually wanted the money he would demand the sale proceeds be sent to a specific charity or something. But he divested all control over even that aspect.

The very little respect I had for the English press and Government has basically evaporated. Are they going to make Boris figure out a way to give all the Russian Coke he snorted back? Maybe prorated cost in cheque to invasion displaced migrants?
 
pcaming said:
Not really a legal mind, but if the government forces things through, when all of this eventually subsides what stops Roman from taking the government to court?
Click to expand...

I think it is fairly obvious the UK Govt are trying to work this sale in such a way to cut off the legs of any future RA claims.
 
This whole episode should be a sign for the British government to pay more attention to who are taking over their football clubs. I say should, but I'm not holding my breath. The same group of people who ordered the death of a journalist now owns Newcastle United.
 
Dave Smith said:
I think it is fairly obvious the UK Govt are trying to work this sale in such a way to cut off the legs of any future RA claims.
Click to expand...

Personally don't think he'll just write it off as he's publicly said he would, it's bs. Everything we know about him suggests he's totally ruthless, not someone who's going to simply give away such a huge sum of money. More so since he'll probably feel aggrieved by what's happened.
 
If I was a Billionaire and had my asset taken off me, I’m not sure I would be too helpful with its dispoal.
 
Tweet deleted because government haven't given approval? Per posts above, the UK government want to make sure Mr A can't get his £1.6bn back, ever. Possibly that isn't acceptable for him, despite public protestations to the contrary.

If there's a compromise we'll see in the next two weeks I guess?
 
Roman will not sell, unless he gets the money.
I can see a legal battle being in preparation.
 
UweBein said:
Roman will not sell, unless he gets the money.
I can see a legal battle being in preparation.
Click to expand...

I’m not sure there’s an issue here for the club sale itself. It was never going directly to a beneficiary anyway. If RA wants to challenge for the proceeds that’s between him and the UK government.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.