Premier League disqualify Roman Abramovich as Chelsea director but sale of the club set to progress
- Planet Sport writer
- 12 March 2022
The Premier League board have made a decision to disqualify Roman Abramovich as director of Chelsea, however the sale of the club is expected to continue.
The Blues owner was sanctioned by the UK government last Thursday - a decision which saw Abramovich's UK assets frozen, including Chelsea.
Despite the government's actions, Chelsea have continued operations thanks to a special licence. However, the European champions are still negotiating the easing of restrictions.
New York merchant bank the Raine Group has now assessed the terms of the licence and agreed a route forward for the sale, according to the PA news agency.
The Premier League board's decision to disqualify Abramovich is not expected to have a serious impact, considering the sale process was already under way. It does not affect Chelsea's ability to play matches nor the ability of season ticket holders to attend home fixtures.
The club did receive one positive update on Saturday, with the licence amended to allow up to £900,000 to be spent per home match.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport welcomed the Premier League's action and said of the licence in a statement: "We have said all along that we would engage with Chelsea to understand what is needed to allow upcoming games to be played to minimise the impact on the Leagues, football pyramid and fans.
"Following extensive engagement with the club on the details of their structures since the sanction was announced, we have made some further operational amendments to the licence to do so."
Chelsea were put up for sale on March 2, with Abramovich pledging to write off the Blues' £1.5billion debt and to divert proceeds to the victims of the war in Ukraine.
The 55-year-old is looking to sell the club after 19 years at Stamford Bridge, amid Russia's continued war in Ukraine.