AFP reports from London. Todd Boehly’s proposed takeover of Chelsea football club from sanctioned Russian businessman Roman Abramovich was given the green light by the UK government on Wednesday.
Nadine Dorries, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, said late Tuesday that she had granted a license approving the arrangement, which had been approved by the Premier League.
“We are confident that the sale revenues will not benefit Roman Abramovich or other sanctioned people,” Dorries wrote on Twitter.
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“The club’s long-term survival can only be ensured under a new owner,” she stated, referring to the penalties imposed on individuals associated to (Vladimir) Putin and the deadly invasion of Ukraine.
On May 7, a partnership led by Boehly, a co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, agreed to buy the Premier League club from Abramovich for a record £4.25 billion ($5.3 billion).
The Premier League said its approval was contingent on the government’s sale license and “satisfactory completion of the transaction’s final steps.”
Chelsea officials wanted everything finished by Tuesday so they could satisfy all of the registration deadlines for the next football season.
Abramovich put Chelsea up for sale in early March, right before the British government sanctioned him for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Due to government concerns about Abramovich profiting from the sale, the deal has taken a long time to complete.
The total value of the acquisition breaks the previous record for a sports team sale, which was $2.4 billion in 2020 for the New York Mets baseball team.
Since Abramovich, who bought Chelsea in 2003, was sanctioned, the club has been compelled to operate under a special government license.
The UK government described Abramovich as a member of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, and the European Union sanctioned him as well.
The sale of the 2021 European champions brings an end to Abramovich’s 19-year run of near-unbroken success, which includes five Premier League crowns and two Champions League triumphs.
Chelsea finished third in the Premier League in the 2012/13 season, earning a spot in Europe’s Champions League, the continent’s premier club football competition.
The Blues also reached the League Cup and FA Cup finals in English football, only to lose both matches to Liverpool in penalty shootouts.