As you may have seen in the news, Russian Oligarch Roman Abramovic has had all of his assets frozen. With one of his assets being Chelsea, in this article I will go over what this means for the blues.
For the fans:
There will be two major changes for Chelsea fans. One of which is regarding seats. Only season-ticket holders will be allowed to watch Chelsea matches now as no money is allowed in or out of Abramovic’s account. This means that die-hard Chelsea fans who didn’t fork out money for a season ticket at the start of the season will be forced to watch from the comfort of their living room. The other change for Chelsea fans is that no merchandise can be bought. This was quickly demonstrated, as Chelsea shut their club shop outside Stamford Bridge hours after Abramovic’s assets were frozen.
For the players:
The main change for Chelsea players is contracts. With Chelsea’s captain Cesar Azpilecueta and star centre-backs Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rüdiger being out of contract this summer, Chelsea will not be able to renew any contracts so those whose contract runs out in the summer will be available to purchase for free. Another unconfirmed rumour is that Chelsea have just £17 million left in the banks. If this is true then Chelsea won’t be able to pay their next monthly wage bill (£22 million) which could put the European Champions into bankruptcy.
For the manager:
The main change manager wise is to do with Emma Hayes. For those who do not know Emma Hayes, she is manager of Chelsea’s reigning champions in the WSL. With her contract set to be up this summer, this could be a major blow for the blues.
For potential buyers:
The main story coming out of all this is Chelsea’s sale status. With Chelsea being put ‘up for sale’ just two weeks ago there has been yet another twist in the turn. Thanks to Roman Abramovic not being able to receive or spend money in the UK, no sale will be allowed whilst Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues.
By Jake MacLeod
Komen