Player exodus? Limited fans? An effective transfer ban? What the new licence could mean for Chelsea

Chelsea have been granted a special licence to operate on footballing grounds after the UK government passed sanctions on its owner, Roman Abramovich. The British government officially added Abramovich to its list of sanctioned individuals on Thursday morning.

Ad/> The Russian oligarch, who has owned the west London club for almost two decades, announced that he was looking for potential buyers of the club in a statement on March 2. Club World CupChelsea crowned world club champions after hero Havertz‘s extra-time penalty12/02/2022 AT 15:39 New measures have halted any potential sale.

However Nadine Dorries, UK Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, said on Twitter that the club can operate and compete under a special licence from the Treasury, allowing fixtures to be fulfilled and club staff to be paid. /> A government statement confirmed: «Given the significant impact that today’s sanctions would have on Chelsea Football Club and the potential knock on effects of this, the Government has this morning published a licence which authorises a number of football-related activities to continue at Chelsea.

»This includes permissions for the club to continue playing matches and other football-related activity which will in turn protect the Premier League, the wider football pyramid, loyal fans and other clubs. «This licence will only allow certain explicitly named actions to ensure the designated individual is not able to circumvent UK sanctions.

The licence will be kept under constant review and we will work closely with the football authorities.» How long is the licence valid for? Chelsea will now have to operate under this general licence for the foreseeable future, with it set to expire on May 31. />