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May 6 (UPI) -- A consortium led by Los Angeles Dodgers minority owner Todd Boehly and backed by Clearlake Capital has won the bid to acquire Premier League soccer club Chelsea, the team announced Friday. The sale, which is expected to be finalized in late May, has a total value of $5.25 billion.
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Russian owner Roman Abramovich, currently subject to sanctions by the British government, put Chelsea up for sale in early March after his country's invasion of Ukraine.
"Of the total investment being made, [$3.1 billion] will be applied to purchase the shares in the club and such proceeds will be deposited into a frozen U.K. bank account with the intention to donate 100% to charitable causes as confirmed by Roman Abramovich," Chelsea said in a statement.
"In addition, the proposed new owners will commit [$2.14 billion] in further investment for the benefit of the club. This includes investments in Stamford Bridge, the Academy, the Women's Team and Kingsmeadow and continued funding for the Chelsea Foundation."
ESPN reported that the Boehly group, which includes Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and British property investor Jonathan Goldstein, was in deep negotiations to purchase Chelsea after a late bid from British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe was turned down.
In addition to the Dodgers, Boehly also holds minority stakes in the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers and the WNBA's L.A. Sparks.
Groups led by Boston Celtics co-owner Stephen Pagliuca and former British Airways chairman Martin Broughton previously were eliminated from the bidding war, while a group led by the Ricketts family -- owners of MLB's Chicago Cubs -- pulled out of the running.
