Nearly two weeks after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the British government finally announced on the morning of March 10 local time that it would immediately impose sanctions on seven Russian chaebols, including Abramovich, who were accused of being close to Putin, and freeze all the assets of these people in the UK, including Chelsea, who is wholly owned by Abu, and the sanction order also made the plan to sell all the shares of the team that had been announced to be sold immediately shelved. However, the authorities also issued Chelsea a special permit valid until 31 May this year to allow the team to carry out limited activities in order to maintain daily operations and complete scheduled matches as far as possible during the season.
The license details the following activities that can be performed during the validity period:
1. Pay the following fees and expenses:
Salaries and pensions of all professional players;
expenses necessary and reasonable to maintain the day-to-day operations of the Team, including taxes, insurance, repair and maintenance of facilities, but excluding any new capital projects and refurbishment works;
Travel expenses derived from completing a match, capped at £20,000 per team;
The maximum amount of security, staff and catering necessary for the home event is £500,000 per game;
All borrowed or acquired players that have been signed before the effective date of the sanctions
2. All Season Pass holders, as well as those who have purchased tickets before the effective date of the sanctions, are allowed to enter as usual and are allowed to purchase food and beverages on site, but it is forbidden to sell any tickets from now on3.
All receivables from borrowed or sold players signed prior to the effective date of the sanctions;
Fees to be paid by rights holders for broadcasting chelsea matches
Under this ban, Chelsea cannot make any new acquisitions or sell existing players, nor can they sign new contracts with existing players. And because the team can't transfer its stake in the short term, the team may not be able to make any transactions in the next summer transfer window, which will have a significant negative impact on the team's next season and beyond. The freezing order for all earnings also means that the team can only pay for various expenses with the funds it currently holds until the end of the season, and can no longer rely on oil kings to solve them at any time as in the past nearly two decades.
However, the restriction on banning the sale of tickets may bring an unexpected benefit to Chelsea in the short term. Chelsea can no longer sell tickets to anyone, including away fans, but Chelsea fans who already have season tickets can continue to enter without restriction, which means that only home fans will enter the rest of the home matches, which further enhances the home power of Stamford Bridge in disguise.
However, even if the short-term extra home power can help Chelsea retain the top four positions this season, Chelsea's future still faces major uncertainties, especially the plan to change hands in the short term, and it is difficult to predict whether Chelsea can continue to maintain its status as a Big 6 in the Premier League.