Roman Abramovich has handed over decision-making powers at Chelsea to the trustees of the club's charitable foundation, effectively giving executive control to seven figures on its board including chairman Bruce Buck, women's head coach Emma Hayes and the head of World Athletics Seb Coe.
The 55-year-old has taken the decision to relinquish control to protect the club from reputational damage following Russia's attempted invasion of Ukraine. Abramovich has always denied close links to Russian president Vladmir Putin.
Chelsea insist that Abramovich, who has invested more than £1.5billion since buying the club in 2003, has no intention of selling but it remains unclear how the Blues would be affected if he ends up being sanctioned by the UK government.
