'Deeply frustrated' UK government prepared to take Roman Abramovich to court over proceeds of Chelsea sale | OneFootball

The UK government are prepared to take former owner Roman Abramovich to court over the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea in 2022.

Abramovich was forced to sell Chelsea to the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital consortium after he was sanctioned by the UK government following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

After being sold for £2.5bn in May 2022, the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea remain in frozen in a UK bank account, after the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) issued a licence to permit Abramovich to sell the club. The funds cannot be moved or used without a licence from OFSI.

Despite ongoing negotiations, no agreement has yet been struck with Abramovich, which has left the government 'deeply frustrated'. The UK has been clear since the sale that the proceeds of the sale must be used for humanitarian purposes in Ukraine.

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In a fresh joint statement, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: “The Government is determined to see the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine, following Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion.

"We are deeply frustrated that it has not been possible to reach agreement on this with Mr Abramovich so far.

“While the door for negotiations will remain open, we are fully prepared to pursue this through the courts if required, to ensure people suffering in Ukraine can benefit from these proceeds as soon as possible.”

Government sources told Absolute Chelsea that since taking office, the Chancellor in particular has been pushing for a resolution to this matter given the lengthy impasse.

It has previously been reported by the BBC that Abramovich's lawyers have insisted on using the money for all victims of the war in Ukraine including those outside the country, but the UK government has pushed back and argued the funds should only be spent on humanitarian efforts inside Ukraine.