UK Govt is concerned that permitting the restructuring of the club’s debt could see Abramovich benefit financially from the sale of Chelsea
By Kehinde Okeowo
West London club Chelsea are in danger of being banned from playing in the English Premier League (EPL) and UEFA Champions League (UCL) next season.
According to SportsMail, the current operating licence for The Blues expires on May 31, meaning if they are unable to sell the club by that date, they may not be eligible to take part in the 2022/2023 EPL season.
By extension, any delay in the sales of the Champions League champions could also have serious consequences on their participation in the UEFA competition next season.
The sale of the club is under threat amid the UK Government’s fears that the club’s owner, Roman Abramovich, is backtracking on his promise to write off a £1.6billion debt.
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Towards the end of last week, Chelsea informed Whitehall – and the three remaining interested parties – that they wanted to restructure the way the Premier League club is being sold
The changes would see paying off the debt from Chelsea’s parent company, Fordstam Ltd to a Jersey-based company Camberley International Investments, which appears to be linked to Abramovich.
That has raised alarm from key Government figures, who are now concerned that permitting the restructuring could see Abramovich financially benefit from the sale of Chelsea.
Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK Government earlier this year due to his apparent links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has led the shocking invasion of Ukraine
And any scenario that would see Abramovich gain financially from the sale of Chelsea would be in breach of the terms of the Russian’s sanctioning.
Abramovich had previously indicated the net proceeds of the sale would go to the victims of war in the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
The Russian businessman is now arguing that the sanctions imposed on him will prevent him from writing off Chelsea’s £1.6bn debt.
The development opens the door to significant delays in the process as the Government looks to ascertain exactly who will benefit from the sale of the club in the event of the deal being restructured.
