Roman Abramovich Disqualified As Chelsea FC Director By Premier League

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has been disqualified as a director of the club by the Premier League.

The decision was announced on Saturday, two days after Abramovich was hit with sanctions by the UK government.

Abramovich was sanctioned by the government on Thursday in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The 55-year-old was one of seven oligarchs sanctioned this week, with the government targeting individuals believed to be close to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Abramovich has denied claims he has close ties to Putin.

The sanctions halted Abramovich's attempts to sell the club, while also impacting the way Chelsea operates on a day-to-day basis.

READ MORE: Chelsea FC Sale Halted By UK Government As Roman Abramovich Is Sanctioned

But Chelsea's teams have been allowed to continue playing their games under a special license granted by the government.

And it is not believed that the Premier League's decision to disqualify Abramovich from the Chelsea board will change the club's situation greatly.

Indeed, the Premier League said that Abramovich's disqualification will "not impact on the club's ability to train and play".

Removing an owner from a board would usually trigger the sale of their shares, but Abramovich's sanctions from the government do not permit him from cashing-in on any of his UK assets, including Chelsea FC.

Abramovich had been hoping to sell the club before being sanctioned.

He released a statement via Chelsea's official website on March 2 to announce his intention to sell the club.

Abramovich has lent the club around £1.5 billion since taking over in 2003 but in the statement he said he would "not be asking for any loans to be repaid."

He also vowed to pass on "all net proceeds" from the sale of the club to a new charitable foundation to help "all victims of the war in Ukraine".

A lot has changed since he made that statement.

Abramovich had been hoping to sell Chelsea FC for around £3 billion, but the sanctions imposed by the UK government now prohibit him from selling the club.

However, BBC Sport claim that the government could be open to adjusting the terms of Chelsea's special license in order to permit the sale of the club, as long as Abramovich receives none of the proceeds.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich pictured at Stamford Bridge in 2015

IMAGO/Adam Davy