The sale of Chelsea is set to be approved by the Premier League this week.
The news of that imminent approval comes after it emerged that the chief executive of Unicef has written to ministers promising Roman Abramovich cannot benefit from the £4.25billion deal, as Todd Boehly waits for his takeover to get green-lighted by the Government.
There are still worries about where the funds could end up, despite Abramovich vowing that all proceeds will go to charity. Unicef chief executive Mike Penrose has been asked by Abramovich to launch the £2.5bn foundation for Ukraine, where Chelsea’s current owner says the money from the Boehly takeover will go.
And Penrose has assured ministers that the charity will have no input from Abramovich or his associates. Speaking to Telegraph Sport from Ukraine, Penrose has claimed “lives are at stake” while ministers delay and carry out checks.
“No one who has any association would be employed to do anything,” Penrose told Telegraph Sport. “No one could receive any financial benefit from this at all. I’ve never met him. I’ve never spoken to him.
“They [Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck and Abramovich’s spokeswoman] reached out to me because I was the CEO of Unicef UK, I was CEO of Action Contre la Faim, I was the global humanitarian director for Save the Children, and chairman of Soccer Aid.
“They reached out to me to do this, so I have created this independently on my own initiative. All I’ve ever done is referred back and the only commentary I’ve ever had back from Chelsea or from others is that this looks like exactly what we want.”
The Telegraph report that Chelsea and Boehly’s group, which includes Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and Mark Walter, are set to receive confirmation that they have passed the Premier League owners’ and directors’ test “imminently”.
Whether or not the Government will add its own approval is crucial. But sources close to the deal have told Standard Sport that Boehly’s buyout remains on track to be completed by the May 31 deadline, when the special licence granted to Chelsea in light of Abramovich’s sanctions will expire.
