Chelsea takeover: Steve Pagliuca breaks his silence over his interest in buying the club

Boston Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca has broken his silence over his interest in buying Chelsea Football Club.

The 67-year-old – a private equity billionaire who chairs Bain Capital – and his consortium are one of the four bidders looking to purchase the Premier League side.

Having remained silent on his intent to buy Chelsea, Pagliuca made a number of commitments to the club on Tuesday, which include making a pledge to redevelop Stamford Bridge while promising never to join a revived European Super League.

Pagliuca and a number of other co-investors have only just bought a controlling stake in Italian club Atalanta, which could cause issues if his bid for purchasing Chelsea was successful.

Under UEFA rules, if two clubs are majority-owned by the same entity and are drawn against each other in the same competition, one side would have to forfeit the tie. 

And in a statement issued to Sky News, Pagliuca said his bid would be ‘substantial and credible – one that we expect will meet the respective requirements and regulations of the Premier League, UK Government and UEFA – and we pledge to honor our commitment to credibility and good guardianship of Chelsea Football Club from day one’.

Sky News are reporting that the reference to UEFA signals his intent to reduce his stake in the Serie A side, as he prepares to submit his final offer ahead of the Thursday deadline.

Mr Pagliuca added his consortium would ‘continue to cherish and preserve the legacy and traditions of the club’.

Boston Celtics chief Steve Pagliuca has broken his silence over his intention to buy Chelsea FC

Pagliuca has declared that he will ‘cherish and preserve’ Chelsea if his bid is successful

‘In over 20 years of ownership of the Boston Celtics, we have not once considered changing the name, colours, or logo of the club. This is our guarantee to Chelsea fans.’ 

Along with agreeing to not join any revived European Super League project, Pagliuca also made commitments to Chelsea’s men’s and women’s teams and any community and diversity initiatives.

‘We will support our players and managers to make sure that Chelsea are habitual winners and title contenders, whether in the Premier League, Champions League or the Women’s Super League [the only Super League we intend competing in, for the record].

‘In addition, we will continue to invest in the youth academy to develop the stars of the future and we would not be in this process if we did not have an exciting and inclusive vision for Chelsea.’

Along with Pagliuca and his consortium, that reportedly includes NBA chairman Larry Tanenbaum, Passport Capital founder John Burbank and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, the remaining contenders to buy Chelsea must submit final offers for the Stamford Bridge club on April 14. 

His statement on Tuesday suggested he would reduce his stake in Italian club Atalanta

New York merchant bank the Raine Group will then hope to present a preferred bidder to Downing Street in the week of April 18.

The Government must approve the eventual buyer, with the issuing of a new Treasury licence for the sale the final hurdle for Chelsea’s would-be new owners. 

The sale of the Stamford Bridge club could reach a sports franchise record £3billion, with the destination of those funds yet to be determined. The sale proceeds could either be frozen, or diverted into a charitable foundation to aid victims of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Chicago Cubs owners the Ricketts family and Los Angeles Dodgers part-owner Todd Boehly, in partnership with US magnate Mark Walter and British businessman Jonathan Goldstein, have both pushed hard in their bids for the Blues.

Sir Martin Broughton and Lord Sebastian Coe have teamed up on another bid, while Boston Celtics co-owner Stephen Pagliuca is also in the running.

The Ricketts family’s bid has drawn criticism among Chelsea supporters, with an online petition launched against their candidacy.

A small protest was also staged at Stamford Bridge ahead of Brentford’s 4-1 win over Chelsea on Saturday, April 2.

67-year-old made commitments to staying at Stamford Bridge and redeveloping the ground

Pagliuca also made commitments to Chelsea’s men’s and women’s teams

Chelsea supporters have objected to controversies around the family including patriarch Joe Ricketts’ Islamophobic statements in leaked emails from 2019.

Siblings Tom and Laura Ricketts are thought to be considered suitable bid leaders however, owing to their Cubs stewardship and efforts towards community relations and diversity and inclusion in Chicago.

The bid also boasts major financial backing from two of America’s richest men in Ken Griffin and Dan Gilbert.

The Cubs owners’ public pledges to keep Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, reject any European Super League and to include supporters in decision-making processes are thought to have calmed any unease in Downing Street.

Broughton and Coe’s consortium’s bid for Chelsea would find favour in Government, given the duo’s clear establishment links and track record in sporting administration. 

Pagliuca’s track record in the NBA is not thought to generate any concerns in Downing Street either.

Both the Broughton and Pagliuca consortium offers would likely require divesting of other football club shares, but Government chiefs are understood to expect Raine Group to have already accounted for such detail in whittling down their shortlist.

Pete, Todd, Laura and Tom Ricketts pose together at their unveiling as the eighth owners of the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise

Josh Harris and David Blitzer would have to offload their shareholding in Crystal Palace if they are named in the Broughton bid as expected, while Pagliuca would need to reduce his 55 per cent share in Italian club Atalanta.

The Boehly-Goldstein bid appears to have precious few sticking points from a Government perspective.

The heads of the four consortiums met with Chelsea’s board executives last week, aiming to gather as much information as possible amid the fine-tuning of their bids.

Russian-Israeli billionaire Abramovich put Chelsea up for sale on March 2, amid Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine.

The 55-year-old was then sanctioned by the UK Government on March 10, with Downing Street claiming to have proven his links to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Chelsea have been granted a special Government licence to continue operating, though under strict terms.

Abramovich cannot profit from Chelsea’s sale, but had already vowed to write off the club’s £1.5billion debt.

Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia – who has worked for Roman Abramovich throughout her career – will reportedly be offered the chance to remain at Stamford Bridge in her current role

Each of the quartet are understood to be keen on retaining the services of director Marina Granovskaia, who runs the day-to-day operations of the club and who is known as a shrewd and effective negotiator on transfers and contracts.

The Russian-Canadian has worked for Abramovich throughout her career and is viewed externally as a potential asset in ensuring a smooth transitional process following the takeover.

Whether the 47-year-old would wish to continue at Stamford Bridge remains to be seen.