Chelsea's next steps in takeover blueprint as full details of Todd Boehly sale explained

After 13 weeks of twists and turns, Chelsea Football Club is under new ownership.

A consortium led by Todd Boehly has taken over from sanctioned Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich and the government restrictions that threatened to derail their season have been lifted. Boehly comes with a solid track record in sports ownership having already revived the fortunes of the LA Dodgers baseball team.

But there are still plenty of questions around the sales process which saw his group acquire Chelsea and what happens now as the West London side enter a new era that brings excitement and uncertainty.

Here attempts to explain the who, what, where and why.

Staff were informed of its completion at the end of last week and the club released a statement on Saturday saying it was all wrapped up. A more thorough statement was published yesterday afternoon that included words from Boehly and a thank you to Abramovich, who had bought the club 19 years ago and issued his own statement on his departure.

The special operating licence imposed in mid-March when Abramovich was added to the sanctions list has been removed. That had stopped any investment being made into the club, left supporters unable to buy tickets and barred any recruitment or contract decisions from being made.

"The club is now no longer subject to the sanctions imposed on Roman Abramovich, an individual who has enabled [Vladimir] Putin's brutal and barbaric invasion of Ukraine," a government spokesman said on Monday evening. "Chelsea's long-term future is now secured and binding commitments have been received which ensure sanctioned individuals cannot financially benefit from the sale."

This was the sticking point for the government, who wanted clear evidence that