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The British government said Abramovich is “one of the few oligarchs from the 1990s to maintain prominence under Putin.” Abramovich has previously denied having a close relationship with Putin.
Abramovich, whom the government said is worth more than 9 billion pounds (more than $12.2 billion), recently announced he was selling his west London soccer club, with money from the sale going to a foundation to benefit “all victims of the war in Ukraine.” Commentators said the latest sanctions crackdown complicates the sale of the club, which Abramovich bought in 2003 for about $185 million.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “There can be no safe havens for those who have supported [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s vicious assault on Ukraine. Today’s sanctions are the latest step in the U.K.’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people. We will be ruthless in pursuing those who enable the killing of civilians, destruction of hospitals and illegal occupation of sovereign allies.”
Oleg Deripaska, a former business partner of Abramovich whom the government said is worth 2 billion pounds ($2.6 billion), is also on the sanctions list. Others on the list include Igor Sechin, chief executive of Rosneft; Andrey Kostin, chairman of VTB bank; Alexei Miller, chief executive officer of energy company Gazprom; Nikolai Tokarev, president of the Russia state-owned pipeline company Transneft; and Dmitri Lebedev, chairman of the board of directors of Bank Rossiya.
The British government said that the seven Russians slapped with sanctions on Thursday have a collective net worth of around 15 billion pounds ($19.8 billion).
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “Today’s sanctions show once again that oligarchs and kleptocrats have no place in our economy or society. With their close links to Putin they are complicit in his aggression. The blood of the Ukrainian people is on their hands. They should hang their heads in shame.”
Sports Secretary Nadine Dorries said that the sanctions on Abramovich will “obviously have a direct impact” on the soccer club Chelsea and its fans.
She said the British government is issuing a “special license” that would allow Chelsea, one of the top teams in England’s Premier League, to continue to operate.
The license will allow “staff to be paid and existing ticket holders to attend matches while, crucially, depriving Abramovich of benefiting from his ownership of the club,” she said. “I know this brings some uncertainty, but the government will work with the league and clubs to keep football being played while ensuring sanctions hit those intended.”
During his tenure as owner, Chelsea won five Premier League trophies, five FA Cups and the 2012 and 2021 UEFA Champions League titles, the biggest prize in global club soccer. Last month, Chelsea won the FIFA Club World Cup for the first time; among its top players is American Christian Pulisic, a star on the U.S. national team.
A handful of Premier League teams are already owned or partly owned by Americans — Arsenal, Manchester United, Leeds United, Fulham — and a number of American names have been floated as potential buyers of Chelsea.
Billionaire Todd Boehly, a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Lakers and Sparks, quickly surfaced as a possible buyer, as did Robert “Woody” Johnson, owner of the New York Jets. Johnson, according to ESPN, has already spoken to the Raine Group, which is handling the bidding process, and he hopes to become the latest NFL owner to buy into the Premier League. During the Trump administration, Johnson served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom.
The Chelsea Supporters’ Trust, a fan group, implored the government “to conduct a swift process to minimize the uncertainty over Chelsea’s future.” It also called for supporters “to be given a golden share as part of a sale of the club.”
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