Chelsea sale: Deadline for bids passes as Nick Candy and Ricketts family confirm they have submitted offers | Football News
The 9pm deadline for bids to buy Chelsea has passed, with Nick Candy and the Ricketts family confirming they have submitted offers for the club.
The sale has come amid UK and EU sanctions on Roman Abramovich following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with Chelsea also under a number of restrictions.
The club – including women and youth teams – cannot sell tickets to games or sell merchandise and are restricted on how much they can spend on any given game day.
It is a unique situation for many reasons, but especially that a club like Chelsea does not become available on the open market very often, if ever. They are one of the biggest clubs in the world – the world and European champions – so there is a lot of interest.
Two of the biggest interested parties have both confirmed that they have submitted bids.
British Luxury property developer Candy – who has already pledged to have fan representation on the club’s board if he is successful – confirmed he is leading a global consortium to purchase Chelsea, submitting a bid of £2billion.
A statement added: “The Blue Football Consortium brings together a wealth of global sports, technology, strategic planning, real estate, financial and management expertise, access to capital and global resources to ensure that Chelsea can compete on the world stage for years to come.
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Property developer and prospective Chelsea owner Nick Candy says he loves the club and doesn’t mind who takes over as long as it is in safe hands
“With global investors including South Korea’s Hana Financial Group and C&P Sports Group, Mr Candy’s consortium composition matches his vision for the club: to combine the global outlook required to compete in a global game, whilst ensuring the values, heritage and legacy of this highly respected club are preserved for future generations.
“Mr Candy believes the proposed offer provides the ability to transfer stewardship of Chelsea seamlessly and efficiently, at an attractive valuation, to a committed and credible group with considerable global resources to continue the development of the club which has been so successful since 2003.
“The group will be visible and responsible shareholders and through Mr Candy in particular, the consortium will have a truly local, on-the-ground presence and an inherent understanding of the club’s rich heritage from a supporter with a lifelong affinity to the club.”
Candy then commented: “Chelsea is one of the most iconic and successful professional football clubs in the world, with a rich heritage, global following, and a highly valuable brand.
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Chelsea’s win over Newcastle in the Premier League
“Football clubs are vitally important community and cultural assets, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give football back to the fans and put them at the heart of the operations and strategy of a leading global football club.
“I believe Chelsea has all of the fundamentals to become the most valuable and respected sports club in the world and a force for the greater good in everything it does.”
The Ricketts family – owners of the Chicago Cubs and one of the biggest names linked with a big – also confirmed on Friday evening that they had sent in an offer.
An official statement from the family said: “The Ricketts Family, owners of the Chicago Cubs, can confirm they will be leading an investment group that will make a formal bid for Chelsea Football Club this Friday (March 18).
Chicago Cubs owner Thomas S. Ricketts and his family have submitted a bid for Chelsea (pic: Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire)
“As long-time operators of an iconic professional sports team, the Ricketts Family and their partners understand the importance of investing for success on the pitch, while respecting the traditions of the club, the fans and the community.
“We look forward to sharing further details of our plans in due course.”
Significantly, they are backed by Ken Griffin, who is a hedge fund billionaire and Sky Sports News has been told he is almost three times as rich as Abramovich. He is also the single richest individual that is reportedly interested in buying Chelsea.
Who else has been linked with a potential bid?
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Gary Neville answers questions from viewers on a range of topics from Marcus Rashford’s future to the ownership situation at Chelsea
There have been other confirmations of bids for Chelsea alongside the Ricketts family, with Aethel Partners putting in a bid worth more than £2billion for Chelsea on Thursday.
An investment company based in Berkeley Square in London, it is willing to provide Chelsea with an immediate £50m to deal with any short-term financing the club may need.
Other names linked with a potential bid include former chairman of British Airways and Liverpool Sir Martin Broughton.
There is also a potential other bid from the US, from part-owner of the LA Dodgers Todd Boehly who has teamed up with Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and they are backed by Jonathan Goldstein.
Times columnist and former Conservative government adviser Daniel Finkelstein has joined the trio.
American investment firm Clearlake Capital have joined the same consortium, report Sky News, though the consortium’s bid is now overfunded.
Bloomberg are reporting that Barbara Charone has also joined the same consortium. She is a Chelsea fan who set up the music PR company MBC PR. Madonna, Foo Fighters, Rod Stewart and Maroon 5 are some of their artists.
