Chelsea fans chant Roman Abramovich’s name at Norwich amid club sanctions

Chelsea fans showed their support for Russian owner Roman Abramovich by chanting his name at Carrow Road this evening.

The Blues take on Norwich tonight in their first match since the club were sanctioned by the UK Government amid Abramovich’s alleged links to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who ordered the invasion of Ukraine last month.

As the teams walked out to the pitch tonight, sections of the Chelsea fan base could be heard chanting Abramovich’s name.

The Blues are allowed to carry on playing matches but have been hit with a variety of sanctions including being unable to buy or sell players, no new ticket sales allowed and the club shop having to close its doors.

Ahead of the Premier League clash this evening, Three UK announced it had suspended its deal with Chelsea and the company will not be displaying their logo on the club’s shirts or around Stamford Bridge.

The sponsorship deal with the mobile network provider is worth £40m-a-year to the west London club, but Three have chosen to act after Abramovich was sanctioned and his assets frozen.

A Three spokesperson said: ‘In light of the government’s recently announced sanctions, we have requested Chelsea Football Club temporarily suspend out sponsorship of the club, including the removal of our brand from shirts and around the stadium until further notice.

‘We recognise that this decision will impact the many Chelsea fans who follow their team passionately. However, we feel that given the circumstances, and the Government sanction that is in place, it is the right thing to do.

‘As a mobile network, the best way we can support the people of Ukraine is to ensure refugees arriving in the UK from the conflict and customers currently in Ukraine can stay connected to the