With the list of buyers restricted to four candidates, Chelsea is aiming for a sale by the end of April, that is, a month and a half after the sanctions imposed by the British government on its owner, the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
April 18 is the deadline for the Government of Boris Johsnon to receive the chosen candidacy of the four that remain in the race to take over Chelsea. According to ‘Sky Sports’, that same week Downing Street will issue a special license so that the transaction can be carried out and the club changes hands for the first time since Abramovich took it over in 2003.
Once the government issues the license, the Premier League will have to approve the purchase, a process that, according to the league’s chief executive, Richard Masters, could take about ten days. However, the manager assured that, if it was necessary to do it more quickly, it could be achieved in less time.
The four ‘finalists’
Raine Group, the American bank that is managing the sale of Chelsea, selected last week the four best offers that have come. These are the Ricketts family, owners of the Chicago Cubs, the consortium led by Todd Boehly, co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, billionaire Stephen Pagliuca, owner of the Boston Celtics and Atalanta, and, finally, Martin Broughton, Former Chairman of British Airways and Liverpool.
One of those four candidates will be the new owner of Chelsea, which, until the operation is completed, will continue with its assets frozen and its capacity for action limited in financial terms.