Who is Todd Boehly and who is in his billionaire Chelsea takeover consortium?
ITV News' Chris Skudder hears Chelsea' fans verdict on the takeover development.
American billionaire Todd Boehly and his consortium have won the race to buy Chelsea FC from Roman Abramovich.
The LA Dodgers co-owner and his group have struck a £4.25billion deal to buy the blues, after billionaire Roman Abramovich sold the club amid Russia's Ukraine invasion.
Mr Abramovich cannot profit from the sale under the terms of his sanctions.
However Chelsea confirmed on Saturday morning it planned to uphold his aim to donate all proceeds of the club's sale to a charitable foundation.
Mr Boehly was pictured at Stamford Bridge ahead of Chelsea's Premier League clash against the Wolves just hours after the announcement.
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He was pictured in conversation to Chelsea chairman, Bruce Buck, before taking in the match.
We took a look at the main players in one of the most lucrative takeovers in sports franchise history.
Who is Todd Boehly and how did he make his fortune?
The 46-year-old LA Dodgers co-owner boasts a personal net worth of $4.6billion USD (£3.7bn), according to Forbes.
Mr Boehly is the co-founder and chief executive of Eldridge Industries, a private investment firm he set up in 2015, having flourished at Guggenheim Partners since 2001.
Mr Boehly first made a bid to buy Chelsea in 2019, carrying out significant due diligence on the Stamford Bridge club.
That groundwork handed Boehly an edge this time around, with just eight weeks to race through a takeover that could take nine or more months under no pressure.
Mr Boehly has three children with wife, Katie Boehly.
Clearlake Capital
Behdad Eghbali will act as Clearlake’s main voice in the incoming Chelsea ownership set-up.
The Clearlake co-founder will tuck in behind Mr Boehly but provides an important presence in explaining the US investment firm’s role in the new Stamford Bridge ownership structure.
Clearlake’s majority stake in Chelsea could rise as high as 60%, but the Boehly consortium is understood to have agreed to a number of clauses in the sale designed to protect Chelsea’s future.
Founded in 2006, Clearlake now boasts more than $72bn USD (£58bn) of assets under management.
Who is Mark Walter and what is his net worth?
The US tycoon is chief executive officer of Guggenheim Partners, which now holds more than $310bn USD (£251bn) under management.
Mr Walter helped found the firm in the late 1990s.
Mr Walter has co-owned the LA Dodgers since 2012 when his investment group bought the baseball outfit for $2.2bn USD (£1.78bn).
Mr Walter’s personal net worth is rated at $3.3bn (£2.67bn) USD by Forbes.
Mr Walter had a clear hand in the Dodgers’ 2020 World Series triumph and impressive administration, raising hopes of similar influences now at Chelsea.
Who is Hansjorg Wyss?
The swiss billionaire founded medical device manufacturer Synthes Holding AG.
The Wyss Foundation has more than $2bn USD (£1.6bn) in assets.
Mr Wyss is thought to be among the world’s biggest philanthropists, especially in donations
to environmental causes.
He gained degrees from Zurich’s Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and Harvard Business School. Stints in the textile, steel and aviation industries followed, before his switch to medical devices.
So what happens next after Chelsea's sale is agreed?
The Boehly consortium must pass the Premier League’s owners’ and directors’ tests, before the UK Government will then sign off the sale by granting a new licence for the deal to be completed.
Mr Abramovich cannot profit from the sale under the terms of his sanctions, but the Chelsea owner has long since pledged to donate all proceeds to a charitable foundation to aid victims of the war in Ukraine.
The Government must agree to his plans to set up an independently run charitable foundation to handle the distribution of those funds.
Mr Abramovich wants to write off his £1.5bn loan to Chelsea, but the sanctions currently block such a move.
Chelsea and the Government expect to find a resolution, with the Boehly consortium sale agreement paving the way for the deal to be completed.