The 20-man list is being pruned down gradually, with Todd Boehly and his consortium leading the pack.
The intrigue continues as the noose around Roman Abramovich tightens. The Russian oligarch has had to take his hands off the reins of Chelsea football club. The 55-year-old, who has shown a deep passion for Chelsea, watched the club grow from an almost nonentity to a European heavyweight. He can only watch from the sidelines as the club is pulverised and handed over to a new owner.
While the UK continues to supervise the dance and drama amid the widely acclaimed hypocrisy it continues to spout, the sale of Chelsea is no farther from where it was at the beginning. The truth we know is Roman Abramovich has ceased being the owner of Chelsea, yet the reins remain hanging as the search for a new owner continues.
Several parties have submitted their bids, but peering through them and looking for spots on the garment has proven anything but easy. However, progress has been made, with the latest report suggesting a few bidders are out of the race to buy Chelsea.
Disqualification of a few bidders
The EU and UK governments have clamped down on assets belonging to Russians with ties to the Russian president Vladimir Putin. The fallout of the sanctions slammed on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine is Roman Abramovich having to hands-off Chelsea.
Finding new owners has been slow and painful for Chelsea fans who hope a wealthy owner with a passion for success takes over.
Many have thrown their hats in the ring as they strive to become the new owners of the most successful English club in the last 15 years. It is like a royal rumble, but the latest reports suggest some bidders have been thrown out of the ring.
With the disqualification of the bidders, Chelsea fans follow the events with bated breath.
Bids made, heavyweights out
Reports say as many as 20 bids for the Chelsea takeover has emerged, with eight publicly confirmed. Roman Abramovich announced his intention to sell the club before the sanctions.
New York-based merchant bank the Raine Group was saddled with the arduous task of handling the sale of the club and had encouraged bids for Chelsea before the March 18 deadline. The shortlist of bidders would be a shortlist of options preferred by the club. The cutting down of the list of candidates this week would be on assurances of future spending.
As per The Guardian, some bids for Chelsea were unsuccessful, and this was communicated to the various parties. The Saudi Media Group (SMG) is among those who have lost out of the bidding for Chelsea. The biggest media company in the Middle East failed with their £2.7bn offer. Also losing out in the bidding process is the owner of New York Jets NFL side Woody Johnson.
The Raine Group have informed the Saudi Media Group of their unsuccessful bid. The frontrunners to acquire Chelsea remain the consortium led by Todd Boehly, a part-owner of the LA Dodgers.
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