The sale of Chelsea has reportedly hit a huge obstacle due to fears that Roman Abramovich will go back on his promise to write off his £1.6billion debt.
The Blues’ owner put the club up for sale, setting a £3bn asking price while also writing off the £1.5bn debt the club owe him.
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However, the Russian oligarch was sanctioned by the UK government due to his alleged ties with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Abramovich’s sanctions mean that all of his assets have been frozen with Chelsea able to operate under a special license.
According to The Times, Chelsea have told the government, and rival bidders for the club’s ownership, that they want to restructure the way the Premier League club is being sold.
This would include paying off debt from Chelsea’s parent company Fordsham Ltd to a Jersey-based company Camberley International Investments, which appears to have links to Abramovich.
There are, unsurprisingly, concerns over whether this will be allowed to happen due to Abramovich’s UK sanctions.
If Roman Abramovich now wants his £1.6bn loan paid back as @TimesSport is reporting, then Chelsea have a huge existential problem
UK Govt have always insisted this can’t/won’t happen
Clock is ticking on May 31st deadline but it’s more serious than a complex delay….
— Rob Draper (@draper_rob) May 3, 2022
Ministers have been under the impression that all proceeds from the sale would go to the government who would provide it to many causes, including helping those affected by the ongoing war in Ukraine as well as grassroots football in the UK.
When Abramovich announced that he would put the club up for sale, he said in a statement: “I will not be asking for any loans to be repaid.”
However, the oligarch is reportedly claiming that the sanctions are stopping him from writing off the debt, with the government expected to challenge him on this.
Chelsea’s special licence runs out on May 31, with a sale needing to be agreed before then. It is widely expected that the government will not extend the deadline.
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