Government gears up to sue Roman Abramovich over £2.5bn proceeds of Chelsea sale

• Chelsea
• Chelsea News
• Roman Abramovich

The UK government is preparing potential legal action against former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich

The UK government is preparing for potential legal action against Roman Abramovich. This development follows the former Chelsea owner's failure to meet a deadline for releasing £2.5billion generated from the club's sale.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed in December that the Treasury would grant a licence enabling the transfer of frozen proceeds from the sale to a foundation designated for providing assistance in Ukraine.

The UK government provided the Russian oligarch with 90 days to comply or face court proceedings. Officials have now contacted Abramovich's legal representatives, alerting them that preparations for possible litigation against the billionaire are underway.

A government spokesperson said: "We gave Roman Abramovich his last chance to do the right thing. Once again, he has failed to make the donation he committed to.

FOLLOW OUR CHELSEA FB PAGE! Latest Blues news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

"We will now take further steps to ensure that the promise he made at the time of the Chelsea sale is kept."

The Russian's lawyers are not prepared to go down without a fight. They recently claimed he is ‘fully committed’ to donating the money to charity and also attacked the government’s ‘politically charged’ handling of the issue.

"It is important to emphasise that the funds – although currently frozen – remain the property of Fordstam Limited, which is wholly owned by Mr Abramovich," they previously said.

"The proposal to donate these proceeds was initiated by Mr Abramovich prior to the imposition of sanctions, and he remains fully committed to ensuring that the funds are used for charitable purposes. As such, any donation will be made voluntarily by our clients."

Abramovich gained prominence following his 2003 acquisition of Chelsea, investing billions into the side, which subsequently secured numerous Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.

However, the former associate of Putin faced sanctions from Boris Johnson's administration in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, due to Abramovich's connections with the Russian leader.

As part of the sanctions, he was compelled to offload his ownership of Chelsea, stating at the time that the frozen funds from the sale would be deployed "for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine", including "providing critical funds towards the urgent and immediate needs of victims, as well as supporting the long-term work of recovery".

Yet the £2.5bn generated from the transaction has stayed frozen ever since, held in an account that cannot be accessed and is unavailable to provide assistance to Ukraine.