Invasion of Ukraine represents a blow to the Russian oligarchs in the Premier League

The Russian oligarchswhose fortunes were welcomed with open arms in the Premier Leagueceased to be appreciated after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as Alisher Usmanovnow undesirable at Everton, and Roman Abramovich, who confirmed that he has put Chelsea up for sale.

“The sale of the club will not be done in a rush and will follow its normal course,” Abramovich said about the club he bought in 2003 for 140 million pounds (168 million euros, 187 million dollars) and in which he has made great investments ever since.

Abramovich specified that he will not request the repayment of the loans that he granted to the London club, estimated at 1,500 million pounds (1,800 million euros, 2,000 million dollars) and that the “net proceeds” of the sale will be destined to “a charitable foundation for the benefit of all the victims of the war in Ukraine”.

Unlike other Russian oligarchs, Abramovich has not been subject to financial sanctions by the European Union for now or from the British authorities, but the pressure increased strongly since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Abramovich was a pioneer at the time, opening a gap through which his compatriot later slipped Alisher Usmanov, who entered the capital of Arsenal in 2007 until reaching 30% before selling it all in 2018 with a huge capital gain.

The american investorsThe Glazer family at Manchester United in 2005 and the Fenway Sport Group at Liverpool in 2010 followed suit a little later, as did the Emiratis at Manchester City and, more recently, the Saudis at Newcastle.

Candidates for Chelsea

Often criticized for her lack of zeal in controlling new investors, the Premier League has built its European dominance on hundreds of millions of dollars who came from abroad in the last 15 years.

But the war in Ukraine and financial sanctions against the main actors of the Russian oligarchy have increased the pressure on English football.

Saturday, Abramovich wanted to take a step back by giving up the daily management of the club to the six trustees of the club’s charitable foundation.

The possibility of a sale of the club seemed like a barely conceivable last resort until very recently, but everything has been rushed and potential buyers have already begun to appear in search of a good deal.

The Times wrote on Saturday that the richest man in the UK, Ineos manager Jim Radcliffe might be interested.

He had already scouted Abramovich in 2019, but was put off by the Russian’s £2.5bn price tag and opted for French side OGC Nice.

Russian tycoon Roman Abramovich confirms that he is putting England’s Chelsea up for sale after winning 18 titles in 19 years

On Wednesday, Hansjorg Wyss, one of the richest men in Switzerlandhe told the newspaper Blick that they had proposed to him to buy Chelsea.

“I want to reflect for another four or five days,” Wyss said, adding that three other people had been contacted and that, to take the step, “it will be together with a group of six or seven investors”.

Less involved than Abramovich, since he no longer owns a stake in a club, Usmanov has already been expelled from English football. Everton announced on Wednesday that it was “suspending” its sponsorship deals with USM, Megafon and Yota, three of the companies in which the Russian-Uzbek tycoon has a major stake.

After selling his stake in Arsenal, he had become one of Everton’s main supporters, which was bought in 2016 by the Iranian Farhad Moshiri, with whom he was associated.

The Toffees’ training facility was renamed USM Finch Farm and Usmanov also had an exclusive £30m ($40m) option to name the new stadium under construction after one of his companies.

The great uncertainty surrounding the conflict in Ukraine makes it impossible to predict its long-term impact, but it is already being seen in English football stadiums. (D)