Larry Tanenbaum joins Stephen Pagliuca group vying for Chelsea

Personal fairness billionaire and co-owner of Boston Celtics basketball workforce Stephen Pagliuca has revealed that Larry Tanenbaum, chair of the Nationwide Basketball Affiliation, is among the many checklist of heavyweight backers of his bid to purchase Chelsea.

The consortium led by the co-chair of Bain Capital, a US non-public fairness agency with $160bn of property underneath administration, is one among 4 funding teams vying to purchase the Premier League facet from sanctioned Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who’s promoting up within the wake of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Pagliuca mentioned on Wednesday that he’s co-managing the bid alongside Tanenbaum.

They’re up towards a gaggle backed by the US-based Ricketts household, which owns the Chicago Cubs baseball workforce, and hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin; non-public fairness billionaires Josh Harris and David Blitzer; and a gaggle led by Todd Boehly, co-owner of baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers.

Bidders usually are not solely competing on value but in addition their means to redevelop Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge stadium, which is smaller than the house grounds of main rivals similar to Manchester United.

Tanenbaum’s involvement within the consortium was revealed a day earlier than Thursday’s deadline for closing bids, as service provider bankers at Raine Group press on with the sale of the membership, which has been accelerated by the geopolitical state of affairs across the invasion of Ukraine.

Former Disney chief government Bob Iger and his journalist spouse Willow Bay, Fb co-founder Eduardo Saverin and his spouse Elaine Saverin are additionally backing Pagliuca’s bid.

Hollywood producer Peter Guber, co-owner of the Golden State Warriors NBA workforce and one other investor within the Dodgers, is one other member of the consortium with sturdy ties to the sports activities business.

In February, Pagliuca led the acquisition of a majority stake in Italian soccer workforce Atalanta. Tanenbaum chairs Maple Leaf Sports activities and Leisure, the proprietor of the Toronto Maple Leafs ice hockey workforce and the Toronto Raptors basketball outfit. He additionally helped lead Toronto’s bid to host Fifa 2026 World Cup matches.

Abramovich acquired Chelsea in 2003 and used his fortune to construct the workforce right into a trophy-winning outfit with a worldwide model.

The membership has gained the Premier League title 5 instances throughout his possession, and is among the many elite group of English golf equipment often known as the Large Six, which additionally consists of Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester Metropolis, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.

The profile of the bidders for Chelsea means that American traders will quickly personal 4 of the Large Six. The US Glazer household acquired United in 2005, sports activities mogul Stan Kroenke owns Arsenal, and John Henry’s Fenway Sports activities Group controls Liverpool.

Chelsea gained final season’s Uefa Champions League, Europe’s most prestigious membership match, however was knocked out of this 12 months’s competitors by Spain’s Actual Madrid this week.

Abramovich has pledged to donate the web proceeds off the sale to charity and write off £1.5bn of debt owed to him by the membership.

The transaction requires particular approval from the UK authorities, which has allowed Chelsea to proceed enjoying matches regardless of sanctioning Abramovich, in addition to the Premier League.

A Jersey courtroom on Wednesday froze greater than $7bn in property linked to Abramovich, whose property are underneath shut scrutiny due to his ties to Putin.