Chelsea confirm that the Todd Boehly consortium have signed a €5bn deal to buy the club

Chelsea have confirmed Todd Boehly’s consortium have agreed the terms of the purchase of Roman Abramovich’s Stamford Bridge club in a €5bn deal.

os Angeles Dodgers co-owner Boehly has won the race to buy the Blues amid the most public major sports franchise takeover in history.

Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss now have to wait for Premier League and UK government approval before signing off on the acquisition.

“Chelsea Football Club can confirm that terms have been agreed for a new ownership group led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss to acquire the club,” Chelsea said in a statement.

“Of the total investment made, £2.5 billion will be used to purchase the club’s shares and these proceeds will be paid into a blocked UK bank account with the intention of giving 100 per cent to charity, as confirmed by Roman Abramovich.

“UK Government approval is required to transfer proceeds from the frozen UK bank account.

“In addition, the proposed new owners will make a further investment of £1.75 billion in favor of the club.

“This includes investment in Stamford Bridge, the academy, the women’s team and Kingsmeadow, as well as continued funding for the Chelsea Foundation.

“The sale is expected to close by the end of May, subject to all necessary regulatory approvals. Further details will be announced at this time.”

Eldridge Industries chief executive Boehly was in London on Friday night and is expected to attend Chelsea’s Premier League clash with Wolves at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The Boehly consortium is understood to have agreed to clauses blocking payment of dividends or management fees until 2032 and also barring the sale of Chelsea shares for 10 years.

The signed purchase agreement marks a major step forward in the Chelsea takeover, which has progressed swiftly since March 2, when Abramovich put the club up for sale amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Abramovich was then sanctioned by the British government on March 10, with Downing Street claiming to have proved his ties to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Russian-Israeli billionaire Abramovich has owned Chelsea since 2003 and has guided the club to 21 trophies in his 19 years at the helm of Stamford Bridge.

The 55-year-old is said to have viewed the Intercontinental Cup victory, including lifting the Club World Cup title in February, as the end of an era.

Abramovich insisted on Thursday he still wants to write off Chelsea’s £1.5billion debt once the club’s sale is complete.

However, this loan cannot be written off under Abramovich’s sanctions and is expected to be frozen once the sale is complete.

The club must be sold by May 31, when the government’s temporary license for Chelsea expires.

Chelsea’s current license prevents the club from signing new deals with existing players or hiring new recruits.

Abramovich remains confident that his plan to donate all proceeds from the sale to a new charitable foundation can still materialize.

The government is expected to ensure proceeds from the sale benefit victims of the war in Ukraine, with Abramovich hoping independent directors can lead a new foundation.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel announced on Friday that he was “confident” the Blues are close to selling the club.

“I was told last week that we have a preferred bidder and that things are moving forward,” said Tuchel.

“It’s a pretty important week for the club but I’ve been totally focused on the pitch.

“But from what I heard last week, I’m confident.

“A clearance is always best because when the situation is clear, you can take action, make judgments, take action.

“Otherwise you are in a passive role and that is what we are now.

“We tried to make it as small as possible, but of course it’s always there.

“We prefer to have it in a clear and forward-looking situation.

“That’s what we’re hoping for, we know what we’re dealing with, that’s the circumstances to improve the team and that we can act instead of reacting or worse still doing nothing.”