Chelsea’s takeover has been hit with a major distraction ahead of Raine’s deadline with Blues director Eugene Tenebaum added to the UK Government’s list of sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The announcement was made on Thursday afternoon, with the west London club awaiting the next stage of the process.
Officially of Canadian descent and born in Ukraine, the official reason for his sanctions are that he is a direct associate of current Blues boss Roman Abramovich - the Russian having also been handed sanctions after his decision to sell the west London club was made public. Tenenbaum has been associated with Chelsea since Abramovich’s original takeover back in 2003.
He was handed a place on the club’s board of directors by the Russian oligarch - a position that he has held ever since. It remains to be seen what his future holds in the face of these sanctions - and indeed Abramovich’s decision to sell Chelsea.
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Major developments on the club’s takeover are expected, with the Raine Group having set a deadline of 10pm BST on Thursday for official offers and paperwork to be submitted. It is thought that there are currently four parties in contention to complete a deal.
The Ricketts family were named as preferred bidders, whilst offers from the likes of Sir Martin Broughton and Todd Boehly’s consortium remain in contention. Finally, Stephen Pagliuca emerged as a late player for the Blues, and also progressed to the next stage of negotiations.
