Chelsea are set to play Lille in their Champions League last-16 second leg tie. However, the game may be under threat after new sanctions were imposed.
Chelsea’s Champions League match in Lille on Wednesday night is ‘at real risk’ of being called off, according to figures in France, after the club’s owner Roman Abramovich was added to the European Union‘s sanction ‘black list’.
In the UK, the Blues have been able to continue operating after being handed a licence by the government, despite Abramovich coming under the spotlight for his ties with Russian president Vladimir Putin after the invasion of Ukraine.
This acts as an exemption, allowing them to go about their sporting business as usual, but it has now emerged that the club may need a similar licence to be able to play their match – and generate income – on French soil.
L’Equipe have reported that this documentation is ‘necessary’ for Chelsea, who are still owned, de facto, by businessman Abramovich. The same outlet, however, says the decision may be granted by the authorities out of respect for ‘sporting fairness’.
The ‘black list’ named by the EU Tuesday morning features a number of new Russian oligarchs. They said it was decided to ‘impose a fourth set of economic and individual sanctions in view of [this] military aggression’, namely the bloodshed in Ukraine.
Various stakeholders at Chelsea, UEFA and the Council of the EU are said to have been informed about the risk and consequences stemming from the new sanctions.
On the uncertain situation, a source told L’Equipe: ‘If there is no exception listed in the texts… concerning these sanctions, I think that there is a real risk for the holding of the match in Lille and the players who participate in this meeting.’
Last week, the United Kingdom seized all assets of Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich.
He is one of seven oligarchs hit with fresh sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Also affected are billionaires Igor Sechin and Oleg Deripaska, both seen as allies of Vladimir Putin.
Abramovich, 55, is a billionaire Russian oligarch and politician with close ties to Putin.
Abramovich is believed to have enriched himself in the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union, obtaining Russian state-owned assets at prices far below market value in Russia’s controversial loans-for-shares privatization program.
Abramovich was a confidant of former Russian president Boris Yeltsin and when Vladimir Putin succeeded Yeltsin, Abramovich formed even stronger ties with Putin.
He was formerly Governor of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug from 2000 to 2008.
Abramovich is the primary owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC, and is best known outside Russia as the owner of Chelsea, a Premier League football club.
According to Forbes, Abramovich’s net worth was US$12.9 billion in 2019, making him the second-richest person in Israel, the eleventh-richest in Russia and the richest person in Portugal (accounting for his citizenship in each).