The consortium of Todd Boehly, a shareholder of the Lakers, chosen as a potential buyer of Chelsea

Russian oligarch Roman Abramamovic saw control of Chelsea FC wrested from him by the British government as he tried to evade sanctions for his support of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

This Friday he finally found out who is about to replace him as owner of the legendary West London team.

The American investment bank Raine, which manages the bidding process together with the Chelsea board and the United Kingdom Government, has granted the consortium led by the American millionaire Todd Boehly the

of "preferred bidder", a decision that advanced the newspaper AS and that supposes the opening of a period of exclusivity to finish closing the sale operation.

The group headed by Boehly, which owns a large stake in the American baseball and basketball teams, the

and the

, has the financial backing of the investment fund

and has put on the table a commitment to invest in the largest club. of 4,000 million euros.

Boehly already tried to take over Chelsea in 2018, but Abramovich then rejected his offer.

Ratcliffe's entrance

Throughout Friday, confusion has spread among the main players in the club's complex sale process, when the last-minute and out-of-time offer from the British billionaire and petrochemical industry tycoon INEOS, Jim Ratcliffe, became known.

The offer exceeded 5,300 million euros.

Almost 3,000 million would go to the victims of the war in Ukraine, and the remaining 1,500 would be dedicated to investing in improvements to the club, over a period of ten years.

Ratcliffe assured that he had spoken with the Johnson Executive before launching his offer, despite the fact that the bid was already closed.

“We believe that London should have a club that reflects the stature of the city.

One with the same category as Real Madrid, Barcelona or Bayern Munich.

And we want Chelsea to be that club."

The Raine bank, however, has not been convinced by this blow of effect and began to circulate through the media the decision that the Boehly consortium was the one chosen to close the deal.

The final agreement will require the authorization of the British Government, which allows the team to continue playing with a special license, but prevents the sale of tickets, Chelsea

or any negotiations around the players.

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