Oily Blues: Saudi group 'makes huge bid' to buy Chelsea Football Club from sanctioned Russian oligarch Abramovich

Oily Blues: Saudi group 'makes huge bid' to buy Chelsea Football Club from sanctioned Russian oligarch Abramovich
The UKsanctioned Chelsea's current ownerRoman Abramovich last week, along with six other oligarchswith ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s brutal invasion of Ukraine.
MENA
3 min read
Staff
16 March, 2022
If successful, Saudi Arabian companies could soon own two clubs in the Premier League. [Getty]

A companyhasreportedly submitted a massive £2.7 billion bid to buy after its owner put the West London sideup for sale last week.

This offer is reportedly led by Chelsea 'fan' Mohamed Alkhereiji, the chairman of the Saudi Media Company (SMC).

TheSMC is one of the largest media companies in Saudi Arabia and is the exclusive media sales representative forSaudi Research and Media Group (SRMG) - a company that has The Independentand theEvening Standard.

has reached out to the SRMG for comment.

The sanctioned Chelsea's current ownerRoman Abramovich last week, along with with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s brutal invasion of Ukraine.

The company has no direct links to the Saudi government, but many foreign investment firms in the kingdomhave indirect links to Saudi state officials.

Mohamed Alkhereiji pictured alongside Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman onhis Twitter account and also in hisprofile picture.

The UK has close ties with Saudi Arabia.On Tuesday, the UK's sports minister said the relationship between the two countries is "". Prime Minister Boris Johnson is currently in Saudi Arabia to discuss as an alternate source of energy for the UK after his government boycotted Russian oil following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

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Gary Neville,football pundit and former Manchester United player, has urged the English PremierLeague to implement tougher standards to ensure individuals or states who have committed crimes cannot invest in the PremierLeague.

"I would be amazed if that Saudi media company was allowed to buy Chelsea off the back of what's happened," he said on on Monday.

The oil-richGulf state already indirectly owns one of England'sbest-supported clubs withNewcastle United. The Saudi sovereign fund, known as the Public Investment Fund (PIF), own 80 percent of Newcastle United.

Manchester City is also indirectly owned by a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family in the UAE, a country that has been criticised for its crackdown on pro-democracy activists and role in the Yemen war.

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