The owner of Chelsea Football Club, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovichshocked the world of football on Saturday night by announcing that he would hand over “the stewardship and care of Chelsea FC” to the trustees of the club’s charity, with reports of concerns over his situation with Russian attack on Ukraine.
The Russian billionaire said he felt “wronged” for being classified as an ally of the Kremlin chief, according to the “Daily Mail”.
Abramovich also expressed his hope that Chelsea, who face Liverpool in the League Cup final on Sunday, will be kept away from those who target the famous club and link it to the Ukraine war.
The 55-year-old Abramovich, who has a fortune of 10 billion pounds, and bought the club in the summer of 2003, is again under scrutiny of his property due to his ties to the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Chelsea owner, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich
This came after the British government blacklisted a number of Putin’s allies, making them subject to sanctions and asset freezes, in response to the Russian attack on Ukraine, which began Thursday and continues until Sunday.
The move by Abramovich, who was born in Russia, regarding the management of Chelsea club, came after calls to prevent him from owning the English Premier League team, and fears of pursuing him, and thus seizing his assets, including Chelsea.
On Thursday, British Member of Parliament Chris Bryant called for the confiscation of the property of the Russian billionaire, claiming he had committed corruption crimes in Britain, his association with the Russian authorities, and his closeness to Putin.