MANCHESTER, England – South Korean companies Hana Financial Group and C&P Sports Limited have joined forces with British Property developer Nick Candy to bid two billion pounds ($2.64 billion) for Chelsea, a statement from Candy said.
It added that the consortium also includes “significant investors from Silicon Valley and tech billionaires that own other shareholdings in sports teams in the USA.”
Premier League Chelsea was initially put up for sale by owner Roman Abramovich following Russia’s military operation in Ukraine before sanctions were imposed on the oligarch by the British government, effectively giving it control of the club.
“Football clubs are vitally important community and cultural assets, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give football back to the fans and put them at the heart of the operations and strategy of a leading global football club,” Candy consortium told Reuters in a statement.
“I believe Chelsea has all of the fundamentals to become the most valuable and respected sports club in the world and a force for the greater good in everything it does.”
C&P Sports CEO Catalina Kim had earlier confirmed to Reuters that they and Hana were considering a bid.
“We are in the process of arranging our bid for Chelsea FC,” a statement read. “Surprisingly enough, despite the size of the economy, there has never been investment into (English) Premier League football clubs made by South Korean capital so far.
“Now it is time for a change and we are ready to start the new chapter with Chelsea FC.”
The owners of US baseball team the Chicago Cubs, the Ricketts family, confirmed to Reuters that they had also tabled a bid for Chelsea, in conjunction with Citadel founder Ken Griffin.
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