The British Empire of Roman Abramovich it no longer exists. Was frozen under the sanctions imposed on Russian oligarchs close to Vladimir Putin for the wicked war in Ukraine. Above all, the involvement of Chelsea, the most successful team in the United Kingdom that Abramovich had announced that he wanted to sell and which from now on will have an uncertain future, is making noise. But on closer inspection, the list of assets subject to Downing Street sanctions goes much further, including current accounts, villas, companies, maxi yachts. Assets worth billions of euros, or pounds in this case.
“Today's sanctions show once again that oligarchs and kleptocrats have no place in our economy or in our society. With their close ties to Putin, they are complicit in his aggression,” Liz Truss, the foreign secretary in Boris Johnson's cabinet, said in a statement.
"There can be no more quiet places for those who support Putin's crimes", added the British Premier, "these sanctions are yet another demonstration of our support for the Ukrainian people".
Who is Roman Abramovich?
Roman Abramovich is the most famous of the Russian oligarchs. His fame is mainly due to his passion for football in 2003 it led him to buy Chelsea, one of the most successful teams in the UK and the world. Under his ownership the Stamford Bridge club won 21 trophies, including two Champions Leagues. But the biggest deal of his life took place in 2005, the year in which the Russian tycoon sold a 73% stake in Russian oil company Sibneft to the state gas titan Gazprom for 9,87 billion pounds, about 11,5 billion euros.
Abramovich holds stakes in the steel giant Evraz (his stake was worth £1,4bn at the end of 2021, but had plummeted to £320m on Wednesday night) which is based in London and the Russian metallurgical company Norilsk Nickel, among the world's leading producers of nickel and palladium . According to the latest estimates, his shareholders' equity amounted to 11,2 billion euros, 9,4 billion pounds. “He is one of the few oligarchs of the 90s to have kept the limelight under Putin,” he points out the UK Government in a note.
The sanctions imposed on Roman Abramovich
The Russian tycoon will no longer be able to do business in the United Kingdom and will no longer even be able to set foot there, given that one of the sanctions imposed by the government led by Boris Johnson provides for a ban on entry into the country. Not only that, no citizen or company in the Kingdom will be allowed to do business with him. His current accounts and holdings in the UK have been completely frozen.
In order to escape British sanctions, Abramovich had already put part of his vast British heritage up for sale, which includes a mega mansion in Kensington worth around 180 million euros, a penthouse in central London (worth 27 million), yachts for 1,5 billion, private jets and helicopters for almost 400 million.
Chelsea is no longer for sale, future at risk
But it is above all that attracts the attention of British public opinion the repercussions on Chelsea, one of the UK's most successful and best-known football clubs, whose future is increasingly in the balance. “The asset freeze restrictions also apply to all entities owned or controlled by Roman Abramovich. This means Chelsea Football Club is now also subject to an asset freeze under UK financial sanctions,” the Government explained. Translated: Abramovich will no longer be able to sell the company. The decision to disband the team was announced just days after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Through two notes, the Russian oligarch had first resigned from club presidency and then mandated the banks to seek buyers interested in a deal worth around 3 billion pounds (3,5 billion euros), announcing that the proceeds would be donated to the victims of the conflict.
Downing Street has announced that the football club can continue to playto engage in other activities. "The license will be constantly reviewed and we will be working closely with the football authorities," the government said. The English newspapers write that Chelsea will be able to continue spending only to finance daily activities and pay staff, but he will not be able to make any type of investment (including new contracts and purchases or transfers of players). Revenue from the sale of tickets to attend matches has also been confirmed, but it will be forbidden to sell new tickets for upcoming matches. It is also forbidden to sell products related to merchandising. Finally, a special government permit will be required for the sale of the club, but in any case Abramovich will not receive even a pound deriving from the possible sale.
The other oligarchs sanctioned by London: frozen assets for 18 billion
In addition to Abramovich UK announced sanctions on seven other oligarchs.
Igor Sechin, Oleg Deripaska and Dmitri Lebedev after they were added to the country's sanctions list, including aluminum king Oleg Deripaska, who has stakes in En+ Group, Chief Executive of Rosneft Igor Sechin, Vtb chairman Bank Andrey Kostin, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller, Transneft chairman Nikolai Tokarev, Bank of Rossiya board chairman Dmitri Lebedev.
Altogether they were assets frozen for around 18 billion euros, 15 billion pounds, which adds to the 22 billion frozen last week to other oligarchs, including businessman Alisher Usmanov, owner of 30% of Everton, another Premier League team, and former Russian deputy premier Igor Shuvalov.
