You can now officially say goodbye to the Roman Abramovich era, Chelsea FC supporters. Under the Russian Oligarch’s rule, from 2003 to present, the southwest London club won five Premier League titles, five FA Cups and two Champions League titles. Now begins the era of Todd Boehly and the Clearlake Consortium, a group led by the American billionaire whose holdings include the L.A. Dodgers and L.A. Lakers.
All the ink will be dried on this deal come Monday (sorry for the Jimmy Buffett reference) The club statement is a brief one, and it reads, in entirety:
BREAKING: Chelsea confirm the agreement to sell the club to the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital consortium with the transaction expected to be completed on Monday ?pic.twitter.com/fHOUPhYHVv
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) May 28, 2022
“Chelsea Football Club can confirm that a final and definitive agreement was entered into last night to sell the Club to the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital consortium. It is expected that the transaction will be completed on Monday. The Club will update further at that time.”
According to reports, the club sold for a record £4.25 billion, so I guess inflation is global, and affects all products and services, right?
However, a rising tide lifts all yachts and now Chelsea joins the having American ownership club. See Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal etc.
The Chelsea FC sale has been a long process which has had many plot twists and turns, and it began with Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and then the sanctions against Abramovich.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.