Premier League APPROVES Todd Boehly's £4.25bn takeover of Chelsea
Premier League APPROVES Todd Boehly’s £4.25bn takeover of Chelsea – with the American’s purchase from Roman Abramovich now just awaiting sign-off from UK and Portugal Governments
- US investor Todd Boehly’s consortium agreed a £4.25bn takeover of Chelsea
- The Premier League has now approved the proposed takeover by the consortium
- The final details being ironed out are linked to the fact current owner Roman Abramovich holds a Portuguese passport
- Boris Johnson’s spokesperson earlier confirmed the Government had launched talks with ‘international partners’ to help push the Chelsea sale across the line
- Government sources are optimistic about a Chelsea deal being struck on Tuesday night but said ‘it’s going to go down to the wire’
The Premier League board has approved the proposed takeover of Chelsea by the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Consortium, the league has announced.
Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Boehly had already agreed a £4.25bn purchase of the Blues, with Roman Abramovich’s ownership tenure poised to end after 19 years.
A statement from the Premier League on Tuesday evening read: ‘The Premier League Board has today approved the proposed takeover of Chelsea Football Club by the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Consortium.
‘The purchase remains subject to the Government issuing the required sale licence and the satisfactory completion of the final stages of the transaction.’
As Sportsmail revealed on Monday, the final details being ironed out are linked to the fact current owner Roman Abramovich holds a Portuguese passport meaning the takeover is required to be approved by authorities there, too.
Ministers are in talks with their Portuguese and European Commission counterparts to provide them with the assurances they need to approve the deal.
Government sources are optimistic about a Chelsea deal being struck on Tuesday night but said ‘it’s going to go down to the wire’.
‘We now believe everyone will be ready to issue the necessary licences,’ a source said.
The Premier League board has approved the proposed takeover of Chelsea by Todd Boehly
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesperson earlier confirmed the Government had launched talks with ‘international partners’ to help push the Chelsea sale across the line
‘The last remaining hurdle boils down to a number of final technical details that are being discussed with the club. It’s going to go down to the wire.’
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesperson earlier confirmed the Government had launched talks with ‘international partners’ to help push the Chelsea sale across the line.
‘We are working closely with Chelsea to progress the sale,’ said the Prime Minister’s official spokesman.
‘We are holding intense discussions with the relevant international partners to get the necessary approvals and we will set out further details as soon as we can.
‘We want to get this process done as soon as possible while also ensuring the sanctions regime is protected, but we will say more on this as soon as we possibly can.’
Russian-Israeli billionaire Abramovich has hoped for some time to have been able to satisfy Government expectations on how to handle his £1.5billion loan to Chelsea.
Boehly has been in attendance at a number of Chelsea matches towards the end of the season
The 55-year-old is thought to be confident those demands have been reached, which would finally pave the way for Downing Street to sign off on the sale.
The Premier League statement added: ‘The Board has applied the Premier League’s Owners’ and Directors’ Test (OADT) to all prospective Directors, and undertaken the necessary due diligence.
‘The members of the Consortium purchasing the club are affiliates of the Clearlake Capital Group, L.P., Todd Boehly, Hansjorg Wyss and Mark Walter.
‘Chelsea FC will now work with the relevant Governments to secure the necessary licences to complete the takeover.’
US magnate Boehly will become Chelsea’s controlling owner once the takeover is complete, though California investment firm Clearlake Capital will assume the majority shareholding.
Boehly’s consortium completing the takeover will bring to an end a 12-week saga that was sparked by Abramovich officially putting the Blues up for sale on March 2.
Chelsea’s players and staff found out the club was being sold at Kenilworth Road, amid final preparations for their FA Cup fifth-round clash at Luton.
The Blues prevailed 3-2 despite the obvious distractions, as Abramovich released a statement pledging to write off the club’s debt and set up a foundation to aid victims of the war in Ukraine.
Chelsea are unable to buy players or sell match-day tickets until the takeover is completed
Thomas Tuchel met with Boehly for the first time at their Cobham training ground last week
Abramovich was then sanctioned by the UK Government on March 10, with Downing Street claiming to have proven his links to Russia president Vladimir Putin.
Chelsea were put under a strict Government operating licence, with all of Abramovich’s other UK assets frozen.
Once Boehly’s takeover is complete the Blues will be able to return to business as usual – and there will be no time to lose on reconfiguring the playing squad.
The sanctions meant Chelsea could not conduct any transfer business, with either existing players or external targets.
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