Boehly sells his shares and steps down as chairman amid Chelsea's takeover
Early this morning the English club Chelsea announced that Todd Boehly and Mark Walter have sold their shares to Clearlake Capital, which now takes full control of the team. With the signing of the agreement, Boehly also steps down as club chairman, ending his tenure at the helm of the London entity.
Shareholding distribution and full control
Before the announcement, Clearlake Capital already owned 62 % of Chelsea's shares, while Boehly, Walter and their investor partner Hansjörg Wyss held the remainder. The statement emphasizes that Wyss “will continue to be a shareholder and an important partner within the ownership group.”
Boehly and Walter, who respectively chaired and sat on the board of the Blues, partnered with Clearlake Capital to purchase the club in May 2022 from the Russian Roman Abramovich for £2 500 million (around €2 900 million).
Racing Club de Strasbourg, also owned by the BlueCo consortium from which Boehly and Walter are disengaging, confirmed that Clearlake Capital would have “full control of the capital” of the French club.
Valuation and Boehly's exit
According to the Financial Times, the deal values Chelsea at about £5 000 million, debt included, and Boehly and Walter would receive £950 million in cash. In the statement, Mr. Boehly said it had been “an honour to serve as chairman of Chelsea Football Club.”
In the past two years the English press has reported tensions between Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, an executive at Clearlake Capital, following disappointing results despite the hundreds of millions of euros invested in signings.
Last month, Mark Walter sold his majority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to Bob Iger and Jared Kushner for $12 500 million, and is under federal investigation for alleged tax fraud related to his activities in the insurance sector.
With Boehly’s departure from the chairmanship and Clearlake Capital’s full control, Chelsea begins a new phase under a completely refreshed shareholding structure.