According to the media, Abu wants to sell Chelsea club as soon as possible and asks potential buyers to make an offer before this weekend. The Daily Telegraph, The Mirror and other media revealed that the 86-year-old Swiss billionaire Weiss is most likely to become Chelsea's new owner.
In 2003, Abu bought Chelsea and then helped the club to one of the most successful periods in its history with a huge investment, winning the Premier League five times and the Champions League twice.
However, after the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Abu, who was under great pressure, decided to sell the club. The Mirror revealed Abu wanted to sell Chelsea for £4 billion, after he had rejected a £2.2 billion offer.
The Daily Telegraph predicts that given the current situation, it will be difficult for Abu to receive quotes of more than £2 billion. In order to sell Chelsea as soon as possible, Abu has asked potential buyers to make an offer by the end of the week, and there are currently four people in the competition, the most promising of which is Swiss billionaire Hans Yog-Weiss.
Billionaire + philanthropist
Born in Bern in 1935, Weiss received his master's degree in civil structural engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich in 1959 and his MBA from Harvard University six years later.
In 1977, Weiss founded Cindys Corporation, which is currently the world's largest manufacturer of fracture repair implants. Weiss served as Chairman and CEO of Cindys Prior to 2007 and Chairman until 2012.
In 2012, Weiss sold Cindys to Johnson & Johnson for $19.7 billion. Currently, Weiss also holds stakes in two biotech companies.
As of March 2022, Weiss is ranked 451st on the Forbes Billionaires List and currently has a net worth of $5.1 billion. Weiss had never been involved in the sporting industry before attempting to acquire Chelsea.
Actively involved in philanthropy, Weiss has been described as "one of the world's most philanthropic people" and still owns charitable foundations with assets of more than $2 billion, promising in 2018 to donate $1 billion to conservation efforts around the world within a decade.
"He wants to sell Chelsea as soon as possible"
In an interview with Swiss media, Weiss revealed, "Abu is one of Putin's closest advisers and friends. Like the other oligarchs, he was in a state of panic. Abu is trying to sell all his villas in England and he also wants to sell Chelsea as soon as possible. ”
"On Tuesday, I and three others received an invitation to buy Chelsea from Abu. I have to wait four or five days now. You know, Chelsea owes him £2 billion, but Chelsea don't have any money. Anyone who buys Chelsea has to compensate Abu. As of now, we don't know the exact selling price. ”
"I can imagine that I would buy Chelsea with my partners, but I have to check the situation at the club first. I can say that I am definitely not alone in doing this. If I had bought Chelsea, I would have formed a consortium of six or seven investors. ”