Todd Boehly, Tom Ricketts, Sir Martin Broughton and Steve Pagliuca
The bidding process for Chelsea has been described as among the most competitive in sports history

The money is accounted for, the executive meetings are over, and they have seen a performance. As the deadline for final offers looms, the four consortiums bidding to buy the club can't do anything more.

They have a desire to take the west London side to a new level, as well as billionaire wealth and experience running American sports teams.

The differences between them will be key in deciding who replaces Roman Abramovich as owner, with a preferred bidder expected to be finalized next week before the government and the league approve the most expensive sports team sale in history.

It has been described as one of the most competitive, with billionaires teaming up with other billionaires to battle it out for a prominent place in the hierarchy of European football.

Who is best placed to succeed? It is not easy to predict the answer which lies in the hands of the board.

The frontrunner?

Todd Boehly is an American billionaire and co-owner of the LA Dodgers.

Clearlake Capital has 45 billion in assets, LA Dodgers principal owner Mark Walter has 3.3 billion, and Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss has IdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiableIdentifiable

Barbara Charone, an American PR executive who worked with Madonna, is part of the bid. Both are fans of the same team.

Boehly's bid has been relatively free of controversy and has plenty of finance and sporting know-how to back it up. Boehly already knows the club because he has shown interest in buying it. He is said to have offered fans a golden share, meaning that no major decisions on the future of the team would be made without their input.

Boehly's bid has been a long time coming and has increased its investment capacity as deadlines approached. Nick Candy spoke for many supporters when he said that he does not want a lifelong Spurs fan as part of the future ownership of the club.

What else? Boehly has spoken about how the game has hosted tournaments that have been watched by 10 million people. It's possible that he is well placed to look at a revolution in how games are broadcasted.

The bid hampered by controversy

Laura and Tom Ricketts
Laura and Tom Ricketts watched a Chelsea Women's game when they visited London to speak to executives and fans' groups

The owners of the Chicago Cubs are the lead bidder.

The finance was boosted by: hedge-fund magnate Ken Griffin.

Lord Bilimoria, chair of Change the Race Ratio, will be appointed to the board after questions about their approach to inclusion and diversity. He founded Cobra Beer in 1989.

The Cubs won the World Series for the first time in over a century, and they already own a major American sports team. They spent close to $1 billion updating the Wrigley Field stadium so it has more shops and connections to the local community. If they want to match their rivals in the league, they need to expand their stadium. Their bid is entirely financed on equity rather than any debt, and siblings Tom and Laura have spent plenty of time speaking to fans, though a good deal of their PR campaign has attempted to allay concerns about past comments made by their father.

The anti-Muslim remarks made by Joe Ricketts have been extremely damaging. The campaign was not helped by the disapproval of the club's first black player when he voiced his disapproval, leading to #notoricketts on social media and a protest before the defeat.

Some fans have been worried about how the Cubs have been run, even after meeting the family, according to the CST. Laura Ricketts has met LGBT groups and fans to explain the family's approach to diversity and inclusion.

What else? The political connections of the Ricketts family have been a point of debate. Both Joe and Todd are Republicans, while Laura is a Democrat. Tom, who is the Cubs chairman, is said to be less political and says his leadership style is to help set the goals, give the direction and then let people do their jobs. The difference between running a traditional company and a sports franchise is the profile. Everyone is watching and you want to make sure you get everything right.

The British-led bid

Josh Harris and David Blitzer
Josh Harris and David Blitzer are co-owners of the New Jersey Devils, the Philadelphia 76ers and Crystal Palace

Sir Martin was the former British Airways chairman.

Crystal Palace FC and NBA team the Philadelphia 76ers are owned by Josh Harris and David Blitzer. Investment banker Michael Klein is also on board.

Lord Coe is the World Athletics president.

In the past, he has helped broker the sale of a team to a group. Lord Coe's connections at the club run deep and he is helped by him. Both are lifelong fans, and both have said that they are committed to a best-in-class governance model with fans at the heart of decision-making.

The investment in Crystal Palace by Harris and Blitzer could cause issues because they already partly own another club. The takeover can go through if Harris and Blitzer resign from the Palace board, but the question is if it will lead to delays in a sale everyone wants to proceed quickly. It is understood that there is a plan in place if their bid is successful, but how well the former Eagles owners would do is another question.

What else? The NHL ice hockey team the New Jersey Devils is one of the investments made by Harris and Blitzer. Harris has a stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers. The global head of tactical opportunities is based in New York.

The quiet bidder

Steve Pagliuca (right) is a co-owner of the Boston Celtics and Bain Capital
Steve Pagliuca (right) is a co-owner of the Boston Celtics and Bain Capital

The co-owner of the Boston Celtics, Atalanta, and Bain Capital is the lead bidder.

Eduardo Saverin, a co-founder of Facebook, and venture capitalist Jim Breyer are billionaires.

Larry Tanenbaum is the founder of a developer and co-owns several Canadian sports teams. Bob Iger is a co-owner of the Golden State Warriors and the LA Dodgers.

After the first bidding deadline on 25 March, news of Pagliuca's interest in Chelsea emerged, though he has plenty of sporting and financial capital. The 67-year-old broke his silence on Tuesday to say that histhos has always been to operate quietly. He said that the club should be the pride of London for its on and off-field traditions. The True Blue consortium, which includes former Blues captain John Terry, has endorsed Pagliuca and he wants a 10% stake in any new ownership.

Politician Lord Hain voiced disapproval about the links between Bain Capital and the alleged corruption in South Africa, but the camp for Pagliuca said it was a separate entity to Bain Capital. Uefa's rules state that no individual or legal entity may have control or influence over more than one club in its competition. The billionaire suggested that he would take steps to meet the requirements.

What else? The European Super League made sense for clubs that faced a lack of salary control and risk of being demoted, according to Pagliuca. In his statement this week, he said that the Women's Super League was the only Super League he intended to compete in.

  • Individual financial figures taken from Forbes. Business financial figures taking from relevant company websites.
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