British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe made a last-minute £4 billion bid to buy Chelsea. The owner of Ineos Petrochemical, said he spoke with Chelsea chief Bruce Buck on Thursday and decided to make a $1 billion bid.
“We made an offer this morning,” Ratcliffe told The Times. “We are the only British bidder. Our motives are simply to try and create a very good club in London.”
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The newspaper reported that the British billionaire made his offer to the Rain Group, the commercial bank leading the sale, on Friday morning.
Ratcliffe said his offer would include an investment of £1.75 billion over 10 years to develop Stamford Bridge and other club infrastructure, as well as keep the team at a high level. This adds to the club’s £2.5 billion valuation that potential new owners need to know about. His personal net worth is estimated at £12 billion. Out of curiosity, he’s a Manchester United fan, but he does have a Chelsea season ticket booklet at Stamford Bridge.
Since it was put up for sale in March, when the UK government sanctioned Roman Abramovich after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Chelsea have been much interested in taking over the club.
Ratcliffe, who has already discussed the deal with the government, said Ineos may close the deal this weekend if necessary.
“We will continue to invest in the team to ensure we have a global roster of the world’s greatest players, coaches and support staff, in both the men’s and women’s games. We hope to continue investing in the academy to give talented young people the opportunity to become world-class players.”
As detailed by Sportsmail on Tuesday, the three remaining bidders for Chelsea have begun their final bids, with the first-team favorite expected to be picked this week.
They are still on the way to being replaced by a consortium led by former Liverpool chief Sir Martin Bruton, and another led by co-owner Liverpool. Los Angeles DodgersTodd Bohley.
The third group includes Steve Pagliuca, co-owner of Boston CelticsLarry Tannenbaum, supporter Toronto Maple Leafs.
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