The Todd Boehly-led consortium have completed their takeover of the club.
After months of negotiations, the deal was finally approved on Wednesday morning when the government received legal guarantees that Roman Abramovich wouldn't benefit from the sale.
The proceeds from the sale will be frozen in the UK until the government is certain that the money will be used for humanitarian causes.
Russian-Israeli billionaire Roman Abramovich put his London soccer team, the Blues, up for sale on March 2, a week after the invasion of Ukraine.
The takeover ends his 19-year ownership of the club and will see Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Boehly become the controlling owner. The takeover value is reported to be £4.25 billion, and the new owners plan to invest £ 1.75 billion into the club.
Since the takeover was complete, the restrictions on the sale or signing of players or new contracts will be lifted.
Boehly's simple refusal to countenance any distraction has proved central to the Connecticut billionaire's successful Chelsea takeover.
After 85 days, the Boehly consortium has finally succeeded in taking over the helm of the Blues.
Boehly never allowed his steely focus to waver when rival bidders were forced to fight fires or stray off course.
The bedrock of the winning consortium was formed by the laser targeting of both Boehly and Eghbali.
Boehly and Eghbali have a close working relationship, but both men are low key and humble, at odds with their soaring status in financial circles.
The calm and focused approach that was used by those carrying out the sale of the club won favour with those involved.
The robustness of Boehly and Eghbali's consortium was proved to the top brass at Raine Group, the New York merchant bank overseeing the sale.
Even though Boehly will become the controlling owner, Clearlake will assume the majority shareholding.
The set-up was given the go-ahead by the sellers because of the strength of the relationship between Boehly and Eghbali.
Boehly was able to take advantage of a majorly expedited sale process.
It was expected that the sale would take nine months. The Blues and Raine completed a purchase agreement in less than 10 weeks, with the whole sale complete in three months.
Raine and his team deserve a lot of credit for pulling off a deal of such complexity and magnitude so quickly.
On March 2, the day after the invasion of Ukraine, Abramovich put the club up for sale.
The UK Government imposed sanctions on the 55 year old on March 10, after they claimed to have proof of his links to Putin.
From profile-hunters like Turkish businessman Muhsin Bayrak to more credible figures like British property tycoon Nick Candy and beyond, the sale carried an unprecedented public edge.
In the end, the negotiations remained behind closed doors, despite the public opinion generated by government scrutiny.
Boehly, the Chicago Cubs-owning Ricketts family, Sir Martin Broughton and the Boston Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca were the final four bidders.
The bid was beset by image issues from the beginning, with the family matriarch leaking historic emails where she branded Muslims and caused major concerns.
The offering started to appear compelling after the leaders of the bid were able to prove their commitment to diversity and inclusion.
The consortium withdrew just when the other bidders began to worry about the submission.
The news on April 15 gave the other bidders a sigh of relief and paved the way for Boehly's success.
The Raine chiefs were going to confirm Boehly as the preferred bidder on Friday, April 29, when the richest man in Britain threw a last-minute wrench in the works.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe wanted to gazump the other competing consortiums and submitted a bid outside of the official process.
Boehly secured preferred bidder status after several days of frenzied activity.
The purchase agreement was completed in the early hours of Saturday, May 7.
After 19 years, the Russian-Israeli tycoon's Blues ownership is no longer.
Boehly has been able to attend both the directors box and the stands in recent weeks.
The casually dressed and laid-back new Blues supremo was taken aback by the regularity of supporter recognition, in contrast to his lower profile at Dodgers games in the US.
A natural fascination with the impact of data in sport can be found in the financial expertise of the new Chelsea chief. Boehly will be looking for every possible analytical edge when it comes to recruitment.
Boehly and his group have been satisfied with the value of their sports franchise purchase, despite the fact that some top football financial analysts believe that the leading premier league clubs could be worth over 10 billion dollars inside 10 years.
The owner of the club wrote a farewell message to the fans.
It has been three months since he announced his intention to sell the club. The team worked hard to find the right custodian for the club that would be best positioned to lead the club into its next chapter.
The ownership of the club comes with a lot of responsibility. I have seen what this club can achieve since I came to the club. My goal has been to ensure that the next owner has a mindset that will enable success for the Men's and Women's team, as well as the will and drive to continue developing other key aspects of the club. It has been an honor of a lifetime to be a part of this club, and I would like to thank all the Club. This is the legacy we have created.
The club was bought for a reported 140 million dollars by Roman Abramovich. In his first transfer window, the Russian spent 100 million dollars on Juan Sebastian Veron, Hernan Crespo and Claude Makelele.
The Italian manager was dismissed at the end of the season after his side finished second in the league and reached the semi-finals of the European competition.
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In his first season at the helm, Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho guided his team to victory in the League Cup and the Premier League.
In 2006/07, they added another League Cup and an FA Cup to their collection, but relinquished the league crown to Manchester United.
During his time in London, the club did not win the European Championship and he left in September 2007.
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Avram Grant took charge of the football team at the start of the 2008/09 season but left after a trophy-less campaign.
After only seven months in charge, Luiz Felipe Scolari was sacked as manager of the London club, who were fourth in the league and in contention for the playoffs.
Russia coach Guus Hiddink was named interim manager until the end of the season, as he guided the Blues to the FA Cup and a third-place finish in the league.
In his first season at the helm of the Blues, Carlo Ancelotti led them to their only double in the FA Cup and Premier League.
The Italian coach was sacked after his team finished second in the league in 2010/11, as he was unable to repeat his success the following season.
The Portuguese coach was dismissed nine months into the job after he won less than half of his games.
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Villas-Boas brought in Roberto Di Matteo as his assistant to see out the rest of the season and he led the team to their first European title.
Di Matteo was named permanent manager of the club in October, but was fired in November after they were eliminated from the playoffs.
The move was unpopular with supporters but he delivered success in the form of a trophy.
In his second season in charge of the club, he won the title for the first time in five years.
He lost the dressing room in December after a poor run of form.
The season ended with a 10th place finish in the league as Hiddink could not save it.
The first season that Antonio Conte was at the helm, he won the premier league title. He was sacked after the club failed to finish in the top four.
After a successful year in charge of the Blues, which saw them win the Europa League and finish third in the league, Maurizio Sarri left to take charge of the Bianconeri.
Frank Lampard returned to London and led the club to a fourth-place finish in the league.
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In the transfer window before the 2020/21 season, the Blues spent 200 million dollars, but they were ninth in the table and had to part ways with Frank Lampard.
After Thomas Tuchel took over, they won their second European title. The first full season of Tuchel's reign included success in the Club World Cup and the UEFA Super Cup.
The British government gave control of the club to the Russian billionaire after he put it up for sale in March.
The club is sold in May to a group led by Todd Boehly.
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