Chelsea’s Roman Abramovich smiles after his team’s victory in the UEFA Champions League final between Manchester City and Chelsea FC at the Estadio do Dragao on 29 May 2021 in Porto, Portugal.
Alexander Hassenstein UEFA Getty Images
Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich said on Wednesday that he would sell the Chelsea football club in England, a dramatic move that comes in response to outrage over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
At the same time, Abramovich announced that he had instructed the famous team to create a foundation that would use all the net proceeds from the sale of Chelsea to “benefit all the victims of the war in Ukraine.”
Abramovich said in a statement: “As I said, I have always made decisions with the best interests of the club. Therefore, in the current situation, I decided to sell the club, as I believe that this is in the best interests of the club, the fans, the employees, as well as the sponsors and partners of the club. “
The announcement of the sale came less than a week after the billionaire said he was transferring control of the club to trustees of a charity, and after calls that Abramovich was facing sanctions from the United Kingdom.
Abramovich bought the London-based Chelsea in 2003. During his tenure, Chelsea won seasonal titles in the English Premier League, the Premier League, five times and won the prestigious FA Cup as many times. Chelsea are currently in third place in the Premier League, behind leaders Manchester City and Liverpool.
Earlier Wednesday, the Biden administration said it had formed a new task force to impose sanctions on the United States and its allies against Russian officials and oligarchs who helped the war in Ukraine, which began with President Vladimir Putin.
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