Chelsea now fully owned by Clearlake Capital Group

Chelsea has a new ownership setup after Clearlake Capital Group bought the shares of Todd Boehly and Mark Walter. This gives the US investment firm complete control of the Premier League club.

The club shared this news on Thursday. They confirmed that Mr Boehly has stepped down as chairman. Swiss businessman Hansjörg Wyss will still be a key stakeholder in the ownership group.

Clearlake said they plan to stick to the direction set since they took over Chelsea in 2022.

"There will be no changes to the day-to-day operations, leadership or strategy at the Club," Chelsea said in their statement.

Boehly, who was chairman since the takeover, thanked the club’s staff, players, coaches, supporters, and his fellow owners. He believes Chelsea is "well positioned for continued success under Clearlake’s leadership."

Clearlake co-founders Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano called Boehly an important partner. They also said they will keep investing in the club’s facilities, performance, and player development.

This latest deal marks a big shift from the ownership arrangement that started in May 2022. That was when a group led by Boehly and Clearlake bought Chelsea from Roman Abramovich.

The takeover happened after a rocky time for the club. The UK government had sanctioned Abramovich in March 2022 due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Premier League later approved the Boehly-Clearlake group's takeover after getting the needed government permissions.

The purchase was finalized on 30 May 2022. Under the first deal, Boehly and Clearlake shared control, with Mark Walter and Wyss also involved in the ownership group.

The original deal cost £2.5 billion for the club's shares. There was also a promise of £1.75 billion for investments in areas like Stamford Bridge, the Academy, the women’s team, Kingsmeadow, and the Chelsea Foundation.

Since the takeover, the ownership group has spent a lot on both the men’s and women’s teams, youth programs, and club facilities.

Chelsea stated that Clearlake taking full control will build on these investments while keeping the current leadership and strategy.

The club did not reveal the financial details of the latest deal in their statement.

Evercore is advising on this transaction. Clearlake is getting advice from The Raine Group, BDT&MSD Partners, and BofA Securities, among others.

This change ends Boehly’s four-year term as Chelsea chairman. Clearlake, which has been the club’s main owner since 2022, remains in charge of the Premier League side.