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

[pratyush_utd]

So how rich are these Saudis since they are not related to Govt and PIF?

 

[1905]

Regarding some of the comments earlier, the Government doesn’t choose the buyer in the sense that if there are 5 bids they’d pick the one they like the most. CFC and Roman are still the ones who decide which they want to go with, but then it has to get Government approval, followed by the usual checks with the FA.

Surprisingly (or not so) its the UK Gov saying the Saudi Consortium isn't related to their Government.

 

[WeePat]

Forcing Roman out to just let Saudis take over would be typical PL wouldn't it? Laughable.

It's time all this oil and state owned nonsense was put to bed. It's not been good for football at all. It's absolutely ridiculous. Chelsea and City have dominated the English game for last 12 years and it's blatantly obvious why they have.

Is this now what the league has come to?

Dominated is a bit strong. We've won 2 titles in 12 years. Same as United and one more than Liverpool and Leicester.

 

[Nou_Camp99]

Dominated is a bit strong. We've won 2 titles in 12 years. Same as United and one more than Liverpool and Leicester.

You have won a lot of other trophies though and it's all come from dodgy money.

The league is to blame for allowing it to happen though. These accusations of Abramovich aren't even new. This has been known about him for years. He should never have been allowed to take over. Same goes for UAE using City as a tool to sports wash their global image.

Some people think the PL has never been stronger. I actually think it lost control and entering a very difficult period.

 

[WeePat]

You have won a lot of other trophies though and it's all come from dodgy money.

The league is to blame for allowing it to happen though. These accusations of Abramovich aren't even new. This has been known about him for years. He should never have been allowed to take over. Same goes for UAE using City as a tool to sports wash their global image.

Some people think the PL has never been stronger. I actually think it lost control and entering a very difficult period.

I'm not denying that. What's made the last decade so successful has been the 4 European cups on top of the 2 titles, but domestically 2 titles, 3 domestic cups in 12 years hardly screams domination.

I don't disagree with you on your point about the ethics and sanctity of competition though.

 

[Wolf1992]

You have won a lot of other trophies though and it's all come from dodgy money.

The league is to blame for allowing it to happen though. These accusations of Abramovich aren't even new. This has been known about him for years. He should never have been allowed to take over. Same goes for UAE using City as a tool to sports wash their global image.

Some people think the PL has never been stronger. I actually think it lost control and entering a very difficult period.

It's true, PL has never been this strong since it's creation.
Thanks to oligarch and oil money..yes
but you know when people brag about PL being the best here, suddenly they don't mention oligarchs and oil anymore, but they sure will complain about Football ethics in other threads.

 

[Zaphod2319]

So how rich are these Saudis since they are not related to Govt and PIF?

I guess it depends on who is actually in the group that is buying? I don’t think that has been made public yet?

CBS Sports

report that Khalid Al Saud, who is a member of the House of Saud, has offered up his support.

The House of Saud are thought to have assets worth an astonishing £1.19trillion - which is far more than both Newcastle and Manchester City have at their disposal.

While City owners the Abu Dhabi Group alongside Sheikh Mansour are thought to have a net worth of around £9.2billion, Newcastle's Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia have around £500bn.

 

[Zaphod2319]

Some Chelsea fans on twitter have already picked up on Al Saud wanting to be in the group.

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[calodo2003]

So they could go from virtually unlimited wealth backing them to basically unlimited wealth backing them. Amazing.

 

[ZolaWasMagic]

Nick Candy supposedly being backed by Citadel LLC. Citadel are worth 38bn, owned/run by Ken Griffin

 

[Donaldo]

There are waaay too many idiotic Roman supporters on here.

 

[Bluelion7]

Nick Candy supposedly being backed by Citadel LLC. Citadel are worth 38bn, owned/run by Ken Griffin

Do we know what their bid would be? I can’t find anything. Boehly and his sports group wanted to be at like 1.5 with no guarantees for things like stadium expansion…
Now that the Saudi offer is in, anybody that’s interested is going to have to come with a serious bid. Candy, British, a fan, leading that team… and using his contacts to help integrate a new Stamford Bridge which would probably look amazing … would be awesome. But they won’t get it if they Nickel and dime, or hedge on any of the commitments to the team Roman asked of prospective buyers.

 

[Bluelion7]

There are waaay too many idiotic Roman supporters on here.

You have Stan Kroenke as an owner …..

 

[Adam_S]

More details on the BBC news website about Abramovich's corrupt dealings.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60736185

The Chelsea owner made billions after buying an oil company from the Russian government in a rigged auction in 1995.
Mr Abramovich paid around $250m (£190m) for Sibneft, before selling it back to the Russian government for $13bn in 2005.

The document says that the Russian government was cheated out of $2.7bn in the Sibneft deal - a claim supported by a 1997 Russian parliamentary investigation. The document also says that the Russian authorities wanted to charge Mr Abramovich with fraud.

Panorama tracked down Russia's former chief prosecutor, who investigated the deal in the 1990s.
Yuri Skuratov did not know about the secret document, but he independently confirmed many of the details about the Sibneft sale.

Mr Skuratov told the programme: "Basically, it was a fraudulent scheme, where those who took part in the privatisation formed one criminal group that allowed Abramovich and Berezovsky to trick the government and not pay the money that this company was really worth."
The document also suggests Mr Abramovich was protected by former Russian President Boris Yeltsin.

Pretty damning stuff.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

Some Chelsea fans on twitter have already picked up on Al Saud wanting to be in the group.

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Some of these cnuts have no shame.

 

[stw2022]

Is there anything concrete behind any of these potential buyers or are they just doing what some United fans did a few months ago and just naming random billionaires?

 

[Ludens the Red]

Forcing Roman out to just let Saudis take over would be typical PL wouldn't it? Laughable.

It's time all this oil and state owned nonsense was put to bed. It's not been good for football at all. It's absolutely ridiculous. Chelsea and City have dominated the English game for last 12 years and it's blatantly obvious why they have.

Is this now what the league has come to?

Yeah, although id assume the government are overseeing the sale?. There’s far too much limelight currently on these criminals/sport washers for the government to allow a Saudi group (which like Newcastle owners are definitely not linked to the government) for them to allow them to buy the club. It would make the U.K. government look like corrupt cnuts so actually I’d expect it to happen come to think of it. Even Neville was backtracking on Mnf last night and said maybe it’s time to put a stop to it.

 

[Bluelion7]

As a side note: the UK has amended their statement to say Evraz had the “potential” to provide metal for Russian tanks. That’s because the only Division of Evraz that makes the Heavy armor plating they glanced over is in Portland, Or … and supplies armor for AMERICAN tanks.
The ship has sailed really. But I am genuinely curious: what if the one, single, solitary charge levied against Roman by the UK isn’t true? Do you just say “he’s a dirty Russian!” and move on?
People from Portland to Australia, normal workers, are worried about losing their jobs now btw. Evraz is a global company. If they made up whatever came to mind to get rid of a football owner that looked bad optically …that’s messed up.

 

[AndySmith1990]

We may as well hope that Saudi's buy every club in the league. It's all slowly being destroyed by greed anyway. No one cares when it directly benefits them, so if we all have our own super rich owners we can all be happy; ignorantly enjoying a morally corrupt sport where everyone's a horrible greedy c***. Imagine the excitement of the transfer windows, it'll be literally the greatest event of the year as every club competes to spend the most money and we savour every second of twitter transfer gossip. That's what elite sport is all about

 

[Bluelion7]

Is there anything concrete behind any of these potential buyers or are they just doing what some United fans did a few months ago and just naming random billionaires?

At least two of the bids have been formally submitted from what I understand. The deadline for submission is this Tuesday. No messing around. Roman was spotted getting on a plane in Tel Aviv, presumably to go view/accept the offers in person.

 

[stw2022]

At least two of the bids have been formally submitted from what I understand. The deadline for submission is this Tuesday. No messing around. Roman was spotted getting on a plane in Tel Aviv, presumably to go view/accept the offers in person.

But surely he can’t sell without agreement of govt. If there’s a suggestion he’s benefiting financially from an asset the govt has effectively seized then they’ll just refuse to recognise the deal

 

[Donaldo]

You have Stan Kroenke as an owner …..

And I'm very happy to have been and always be critical of billionaire ownership. I don't defend him like my life depends on it like some of you nutcases.

 

[Donaldo]

As a side note: the UK has amended their statement to say Evraz had the “potential” to provide metal for Russian tanks. That’s because the only Division of Evraz that makes the Heavy armor plating they glanced over is in Portland, Or … and supplies armor for AMERICAN tanks.
The ship has sailed really. But I am genuinely curious: what if the one, single, solitary charge levied against Roman by the UK isn’t true? Do you just say “he’s a dirty Russian!” and move on?
People from Portland to Australia, normal workers, are worried about losing their jobs now btw. Evraz is a global company. If they made up whatever came to mind to get rid of a football owner that looked bad optically …that’s messed up.

Jesus Christ he's toast, get the feck over it. It's amusing how much he matters to you lot.

 

[cyberman]

Nick Candy supposedly being backed by Citadel LLC. Citadel are worth 38bn, owned/run by Ken Griffin

Pretty sure anybody buying a club for 3b will have this sort of money behind them?

 

[MayosNoun]

Wow from bad to worse for Chelsea of they are getting sold to he Saudis. I'm sure their fanbase will love it though

No, they won’t.

Rightly or wrongly, the publicity for our club has been horrendous lately. It somewhat distracts from the goings on in the world.

Ties have been cut and we must move on. I seriously hope the next owner comes in with a good reputation and business model but enough money to keep us challenging.

We will be fine and survive this. We have a magnificent academy and already have players on loan returning who are established Premier League players.

The young players in amongst the experienced heads will give us a platform to move forward.

I really really do not want another owner with baggage. It’s not a good look for the club. The ladies team are fantastic too and they must be respected too. Im not sure many of the female players would enjoy working under a Saudi regime.

 

[AlexUTD]

From Roman to Saudis?

Chelsea will never be respected with owners like this.

Imagine having owners who wants to run the club with the cash the club earns. Good luck paying huge wages on a 41.000 capacity stadium without injecting extra funds.

 

[RoyH1]

No, they won’t.

Rightly or wrongly, the publicity for our club has been horrendous lately. It somewhat distracts from the goings on in the world.

Ties have been cut and we must move on. I seriously hope the next owner comes in with a good reputation and business model but enough money to keep us challenging.

We will be fine and survive this. We have a magnificent academy and already have players on loan returning who are established Premier League players.

The young players in amongst the experienced heads will give us a platform to move forward.

I really really do not want another owner with baggage. It’s not a good look for the club. The ladies team are fantastic too and they must be respected too. Im not sure many of the female players would enjoy working under a Saudi regime.

Really good point.

 

[TrustInJanuzaj]

It's true, PL has never been this strong since it's creation.
Thanks to oligarch and oil money..yes
but you know when people brag about PL being the best here, suddenly they don't mention oligarchs and oil anymore, but they sure will complain about Football ethics in other threads.

The premier league was stronger in 2008 when oil money had nearly entered the scene.

 

[11101]

Nick Candy supposedly being backed by Citadel LLC. Citadel are worth 38bn, owned/run by Ken Griffin

Citadel will not be throwing free money at you, that's for sure.

 

[dinostar77]

So they could go from virtually unlimited wealth backing them to basically unlimited wealth backing them. Amazing.

Difference is that the Chelsea model under Maria Graniskiova works. Firing managers on a regualr basis, hoovering up talent from across europe and loaning them out to anyone and everyone.

New ownership doesnt guarantee success, new owners could be like the glazers or fsg at liverpool. Or they could be state owned farce like PSG.

Also losing Maria Graniskiova will hurt the club, shes a ruthless so and so but she makes it work.

 

[pratyush_utd]

So by when this farce will be over?

 

[SalfordRed18]

As a side note: the UK has amended their statement to say Evraz had the “potential” to provide metal for Russian tanks. That’s because the only Division of Evraz that makes the Heavy armor plating they glanced over is in Portland, Or … and supplies armor for AMERICAN tanks.
The ship has sailed really. But I am genuinely curious: what if the one, single, solitary charge levied against Roman by the UK isn’t true? Do you just say “he’s a dirty Russian!” and move on?
People from Portland to Australia, normal workers, are worried about losing their jobs now btw. Evraz is a global company. If they made up whatever came to mind to get rid of a football owner that looked bad optically …that’s messed up.

Youre pathetic.

 

[BeforeKeanetherewasRobson]

At least two of the bids have been formally submitted from what I understand. The deadline for submission is this Tuesday. No messing around. Roman was spotted getting on a plane in Tel Aviv, presumably to go view/accept the offers in person.

Did the departures board say "Destination - meet potential bidders in person"?

 

[WeePat]

No, they won’t.

Rightly or wrongly, the publicity for our club has been horrendous lately. It somewhat distracts from the goings on in the world.

Ties have been cut and we must move on. I seriously hope the next owner comes in with a good reputation and business model but enough money to keep us challenging.

We will be fine and survive this. We have a magnificent academy and already have players on loan returning who are established Premier League players.

The young players in amongst the experienced heads will give us a platform to move forward.

I really really do not want another owner with baggage. It’s not a good look for the club. The ladies team are fantastic too and they must be respected too. Im not sure many of the female players would enjoy working under a Saudi regime.

I think the dynamic with Abramovich is a bit odd because when he first arrived in 2003 I don't think anyone really had a clue who he was or how he amassed his wealth. I was just a young lad back then but I'm pretty sure certain most adults at the time had no clue either. Years later when people started to fill in the blanks on his background, the fanbase was already emotionally hooked to him and his ownership.

Which is why, though I disagree with the continued support he's still getting, I don't really look at them all and think they're definitely terrible people who literally put football success before everything else. Some definitely are doing that and feck them, but it's not as black and white as that. It took me years to detach my support for Chelsea from Abramovich and it was the stuff he was doing in Palestine that eventually broke the camels back for me. It wasn't instantaneous, like I didn't wash my hands of him the same day I realised he was a crook. It was a slow process.

Anyway I said all of that to say this, that nobody in their right mind would accept Saudi money now. We know up front the kind of ownership they are and where their money comes from and it should be rejected from the start.

 

[Bebestation]

With how well teams like City, Chelsea and Newcastle are doing -

I'm more open to having owners like Saudi Arabian billionaires than Glazers.

 

[Dave Smith]

Be interesting to see how this plays out. If Chelsea get those Saudi owners, City, Newcastle and them are going to be very hard to deal with financially.

 

[UnitedSofa]

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Carragher is spot on here

 

[VP89]

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Carragher is spot on here

I AM THE LATE POLICE

 

[UnitedSofa]

I AM THE LATE POLICE

Just seen it was literally on the previous page, usually quite good at not double posting. Oops.

 

[WeePat]

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Carragher is spot on here

I mean if we're being real here, what he described there isn't unique to Chelsea. Every club does exactly what he said to one extent or another. He was just using his platform to have a bit of a rant and clap back against the Chelsea fans who have been fighting him in his mentions last week.