South Korean companies combine to bid for Chelsea

South Korea companies Hana Financial Investment and C&P Sports have combined to join the race to buy Chelsea football club, C&P Sports’ CEO has confirmed.

The English Premier League club were initially put up for sale by owner Roman Abramovich at the start of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine. That was before sanctions were imposed on the Russian oligarch by the British government, effectively giving itself control of Chelsea.

Raine Group, a US bank, has been overseeing the sale process since before the Russian billionaire was sanctioned. They set a deadline of 9pm London time on Friday for offers to be submitted.

“We are in the process of arranging our bid for Chelsea FC,” C&P CEO Catalina Kim told Reuters in a statement.

“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.”

A source close to the deal told Reuters Hana International would fund the majority of the offer.

Hana Financial Investment is a member of Korean banking giant Hana Financial Group, a South Korean investment bank and financial services company that is also the title sponsor of the Korean Football League and national football team.

C&P Sports is a leading sports consultancy company based in London and Seoul. It has worked on commercial deals with several big football clubs over the last 10 years, matching Kumhos Tyres with Tottenham Hotspur, Nexen Tyre with Manchester City and Hyundai Motors with Atletico Madrid.

The Korean consortium faces stiff competition to take over at Chelsea. Numerous other companies and individuals were planning to make bids ahead of the deadline.

Some famous faces are involved in other prospective bids. British property developer Nick Candy, a Chelsea supporter, said he was interested in making an offer, and has been joined by the former Chelsea player and manager Gianluca Vialli.

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has likewise joined a consortium including the former Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton that hopes to buy Chelsea.

Swiss billionaire Hansjoerg Wyss, who has linked up with LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly to express an interest, has been joined by the British businessman Jonathan Goldstein and the Conservative Party politician Daniel Finkelstein. (Reuters)