The process of deciding upon a new owner for Chelsea took a step forward on Thursday after a Saudi Arabian consortium was removed from the running. The Saudi Media Group, led by the Chelsea fan Mohamed Alkhereiji, was informed by Raine Group it would not be on a shortlist of preferred candidates.
The US merchant bank Raine was employed by Roman Abramovich to facilitate a quick sale of the club after the Chelsea owner was hit with sanctions by the UK government following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Saudi bid was never considered a leading candidate because of concerns over proving the independence of any consortium from the Saudi state, a complication that caused a lengthy delay in the approval of Newcastle United’s takeover by the Public Investment Fund, the country’s sovereign wealth fund. Saudi Media Group said it was completely separate from the state.
