Russian Roman Abramovich Plans To Sell Chelsea F.C.

Roman Abramovich from Russia has agreed to buy the English Premier League club Chelsea F.C. ownership rights.

The sale comes in the wake of the sports world reacting swiftly to punish and hold Russia and Russian athletes accountable for the nation’s actions. Abramovich didn’t appear to have been subject to any outside pressure when he announced his intention to sell the club. 

In 2019, however, the British Parliament leaked documents that connected the owner to Vladimir Putin’s president. This raises concerns over whether Abramovich should remain in the country.  Abramovich could have just made his death more likely by requesting that such a highly-regarded sports team be sold.

“Please know that this has been an incredibly difficult decision to make, and it pains me to part with the Club in this manner,” Abramovich said in his statement. “However, I do believe this is in the best interest of the Club.”

Chelsea FC has given me the privilege to play for them and it is a great honor. Chelsea Football Club and its supporters will always be in my heart,” he added.

Abramovich, widely considered to be one of the richest men in Russia, plans on selling the club for somewhere in the £3 billion-£4 billion range, which would land him a massive profit after buying the club for only £140 million in 2003. However, he doesn’t intend on keeping any money for himself. It is an extremely generous act to donate all the net proceeds to those affected by the Ukrainian conflict. Since the outbreak of conflict, he flew to Belarus for peace negotiations with Ukraine.

After a remarkable 18 year tenure with the club, Abramovich will be leaving as owner. Chelsea was awarded 18 trophies in all competitions. This includes five Premier League titles, two Champions League finals and the most recent, a 1-0 win over Manchester City in 2021.