Todd Boehly was permitted to hold back more than £100million from the Chelsea purchase amid concern the club will be hit with financial fair play punishments over liabilities under Roman Abramovich, Telegraph Sport can reveal.
Club executives under the previous regime had been forced to disclose significant unforeseen liabilities just days before the sale - initially worth a total of £2.5billion, with a further £1.75billion of future investment - was finally struck.
The dramatic last minute change in price was approved as a result of concerns the club could now face financial fair play punishments when Premier League and Uefa auditors are alerted.
Under the sanctioned Russian's ownership, Chelsea had received funding via parent companies in which tax liabilities were understood to have become increasingly difficult to unravel. Checks by regulators after the club effectively became a frozen asset in March prompted Chelsea to declare potentially huge unpaid liabilities to Boehly at the 11th hour.
The new American owner, who partnered with, among others, US private equity firm Clearlake Capital, was subsequently allowed to hold back almost 10 per cent of the purchase price.
That was a contingency should the club be punished under Premier League profit and sustainability regulations, its current FFP structure. As a result, a reduced sum of around £2.3billion appears likely to end up in a foundation for war victims in the short term at least.
Boehly and co-owner Behdad Eghbali are representing the club at the Premier League’s annual general meeting in Harrogate this week where they have met the other 19 top-tier clubs for the first time. Ordinarily, Chelsea would be represented at those meetings by Bruce Buck, the chairman, and the club's chief executive, Guy Laurence.
Since 2003, Chelsea's financial ecosystem had been heavily reliant on offshore payments into the club and a series of interconnected companies. Last year's annual accounts for Fordstam Ltd, show Abramovich injected around £150million and withdrew around £130million to end the year loaning the club an overall £19.9million, and taking the total related-party loans to £1.514 billion.
The loans were due to be repaid to Camberley International Investments Ltd, a Jersey-based entity which was last month the target of a raid by authorities freezing billions of pounds of the Russian's assets. Abramovich had already agreed to write off the debt when he put the club up for sale at the start of March.
Other connected companies to Fordstam include Stamford Bridge Projects Ltd, which declared last week that it had issued one share for £54,010,782 after debt was converted to equity.
The financial set up under the new regime will be entirely different. Following a fraught three-month sale saga, Boehly had made commitments totalling £4.25billion, including the purchase price and subsequent 10-year spending commitments. His consortium fought off 11 serious rivals in a process overseen by Government after Abramovich formally put the club on the market on March 2.
The final hurdle in the deal was cleared a fortnight ago after Portugal, where Abramovich obtained a passport last year, and the European Union confirmed they had given the deal their green light. Initial proceeds from the sale are sitting in an escrow account while Government seeks assurances about a foundation for war victims being set up by former Unicef UK chief executive Mike Penrose. On the playing side, Thomas Tuchel is expected to have around £200m at his disposal in the transfer market.
Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Boehly shares "joint control and equal governance of the club” with main partner Clearlake Capital investment firm. Boehly is chairman of the holding company, backing up his status as controlling owner – a set-up reached by virtue of his robust working relationship with Clearlake chief Eghbali. Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and US tycoon Mark Walter are the other main members of the consortium.
Chelsea have been approached for comment.
Source: Telegraph UK
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