Article by Aurelian Botezatu – Published on Sunday, 09 November 2025, 11:04 / Updated on Sunday, 09 November 2025 11:06
When he sold it on Chelseathe boss Roman Abramovic had declared that the money obtained would be allocated, for charitable purposes, to the victims of the war in Ukraine. But, more than 3 years later, that amount is “frozen” and disputed!
The proceeds from the sale of the Chelsea club were supposed to be a donation to “all those who suffered from the war in Ukraine”. At least that was the intention of the Russian boss Roman Abramovic when he was forced to part with the London group in 2022.
But 3 1/2 years later, the 2.6 billion obtained from the new owner, the American multibillionaire Todd Boehly, is still in the bank, “frozen” in an account supervised by the British government that no one seems able to unlock.
Roman Abramovic's representative: “The British government has not proposed any legal solution to the situation”
“The sanctions are in place,” a spokesman for the Russian tycoon, who has been in exile in Turkey since being banned from Europe over his ties to Vladimir Putin, told The Telegraph: “The assets have been frozen in 2022 and the UK government has not proposed any legal solution to the situation.”
The legal dispute between Abramovic and the British government is not the only problem. Its amount and use are also in question. The Russian tycoon was forced to improvise a sale of the Chelsea club in May 2022 after sanctions against him effectively grounded the club.
Prior to the sale to the Todd Boehly-led consortium, Abramovich said proceeds from the sale would be donated to an organization dedicated to caring for “to all the victims of the war in Ukraine“.
The amount that should reach the victims of the war in Ukraine is only 1.2 billion euros!
However, things are not like that at all. Last month, the accounts of Fordstam Ltd., the company through which Abramovic controlled Chelsea, were published. According to the statement of the Russian billionaire, the donation would be made only after repayment of certain debts.
But if this were to happen, the amount that would go to charity would be reduced to less than half, to 1.2 billion euros to be exact. If and when the account is unlocked, another problem would arise: what to do with that money?
The British government insists that all funds be used exclusively in Ukraine, while in subsequent statements, Abramovic spoke of allocating them to “all the people who suffered because of the war, including those in Russia”! With the last part, the British governments that followed each other since then did not agree.
UK government spokesman: 'We are prepared to go to court'
As a result, the funds from that transaction, completed in May 2022, remain “frozen”. According to the Abramovich clan, the government is to blame. According to the executive in London, the Russian tycoon and the continued rejection of the proposed plans are to blame.
Tensions would also be heightened by the dispute between the British tax authorities and Eugene Tenenbaum, a former associate of Abramovic at Chelsea FC. He took control of some of the companies that Abramovic could no longer manage, but he himself was subject to sanctions related to the war in Ukraine.
The bottom line? The funds from the sale of Chelsea never reached the people they were intended for. A government spokesman in London assures, however, that “the door to negotiations remains open. We are prepared to go to court if necessary to ensure that people who have suffered as a result of the war in Ukraine can benefit from these funds as quickly as possible“.
