Have you ever wondered how much stake Todd Boehly has in Chelsea Football Club?
The Russian billionaire Abramovich put Chelsea, which he purchased in 2003, up for sale on March 2, 2022, a week after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24. After 19 years, 21 men’s trophies and a club transformed amid changing the face of English football forever, the Russian-Israeli tycoon’s Blues ownership is no more.
The long-running ownership story of the Blues was the focus of weeks of bickering and rumour before a deal was ultimately reached to sell the club to Todd Boehly and his Clearlake Capital group on May 30, 2022.
Now who is Boehly and what exactly is his stake in Chelsea Football Club?
Consider Reading: Compare The Prize for Winning The Premier League vs Champions League
Todd Boehly’s stake at Chelsea
According to Forbes, Boehly, a 48-year-old American businessman, is worth around $5.3 billion. He is actively involved in American sports, most notably as a member of the ownership group Guggenheim Baseball Management and a part-owner of Major League Baseball franchise LA Dodgers. It is said that he owns 20% ownership in the team.
The Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital consortium officially completed the purchase of Chelsea in May of 2022. The total investment cost £4.25 billion ($5.2bn), with £2.5bn ($3.2bn) ending up being the sale price of the club, while there is an agreement in place that £1.75bn (2.1$bn) will be invested over 10 years.
Although the exact figure is unknown, Todd Boehly owns a ‘significant minority stake’ in Chelsea. This information arose from Sky News, who claimed the majority stake is taken by Clearlake Capital, an investment firm working with Boehly’s consortium.
The Californian company is said to have a claim to 50% shares in the club, easily making them the largest shareholder. Along with Boehly, other investors such as Mark Walter, Hansjorg Wyss, and Jonathan Goldstein also received minority shareholdings. However, Boehly has a seat on the board and a guiding role despite only having said minority stake.
Read Also: Who’s The Rightful Owner of The Stamford Bridge Stadium?
How Boehly Became The Leading Bidder
Boehly’s straightforward reluctance to tolerate any distractions was crucial to the Connecticut billionaire’s successful takeover of Chelsea, where competing bidders were either compelled to extinguish fires or found themselves deviating off course. The winning consortium’s foundation was built on the laser aiming of co-founders Boehly and Eghbali of Eldridge Industries and Clearlake Capital.
Boehly and Eghbali have a strong connection and tight working relationship. Despite their high status in the financial world, both men come across as modest and low-key. That calm and affable yet focused and professional approach won favour with those carrying out the Chelsea sale, through an often fraught and intense process.
Consider Reading: Why Chelsea Is Called The Pride Of London
Conclusion
According to Sky News, the terms of the takeover prevent Boehly and his fellow investors from receiving dividends or management fees for ten years. The new owners are also prohibited from selling any shares in the club for 10 years, as well as agreeing to strict limits on the level of debt they can take on.
It is good to point out that the “operational control” has been handed to Boehly himself and fans of the Lodon-based football club are already delighted at Boehly’s willingness to splash the cash. As mentioned before, the exact stake is unknown but it is clear that Todd Boehly has a “controlling interest” in Chelsea.
Whether Todd Boehly is the right man for the job or not, only time will tell.
