Chelsea sale: Deadline for bids passes as Ricketts family confirm they have submitted an offer | Football News

The 9pm bid deadline for the sale of Chelsea has passed, with the Ricketts family confirming they have submitted an offer for the Premier League 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.

The Ricketts family – owners of the Chicago Cubs and one of the biggest names linked with a big – 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).

“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?

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.

Sports media organisation Catalina & Partners Group also announced on Friday that they are planning a bid for Chelsea, with backing from South Korea.

The organisation’s headquarters are based on the same Fulham Road which Stamford Bridge stadium is based on, with just a mile separating the two bases.

“We are preparing our bid,” said C&P Sports Group chief executive Catalina Kim. “There has never been investment into a top tier football club made by South Korean capital before. It is time for a change.”

Other names linked with a potential bid include former chairman of British Airways and Liverpool Sir Martin Broughton, and luxury property developer Nick Candy.

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.