UK Issues License to Hand £2.5 Billion Chelsea Sale Funds to Ukraine

Prime Minister Keir Starmer cleared the way for the transfer of £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion) of proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to Ukraine, moving closer to ending the three-year deadlock over the fate of the frozen funds.

The cash has been locked in a UK bank account since Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich sold the club in 2022, when he was sanctioned over his ties to President Vladimir Putin following Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine. A British official said Abramovich has 90 days to make the donation voluntarily or the government will proceed with court action to release the money.