Boehly and Walter sell Chelsea stakes to Clearlake

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Todd Boehly (left) and Mark Walter (right) had been part of Chelsea's ownership group since 2022

Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and director Mark Walter have sold their stakes in the club to majority owner Clearlake Capital.

Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss has also sold his stake, meaning Clearlake - led by co-founders Behdad Eghbali and Jose E. Feliciano - have now acquired full control of the club.

Boehly, Walter and Wyss each had a 12.8% stake, with Clearlake previously owning 61.5% of the Blues.

American Boehly will leave his role as chairman, a position he has held since 2022, when the consortium bought the club for £2.3bn from Roman Abramovich, who was sanctioned by the UK government in March 2022 over alleged links to Russian president Vladimir Putin - something he has denied.

BBC Sport reported in August that Boehly and Walter were exploring selling their stakes.

Multiple sources said talks started within Chelsea's ownership group after a rift, first apparent in 2024, led both sides to explore buying each other out.

Boehly, who is a co-owner of baseball franchise the Los Angeles Dodgers, said it had been an "honour" to serve as Chelsea chairman.

"I would like to thank the many who helped secure a bright future for the club, including the English Premier League, the coaches and players, the talented leadership and staff at Chelsea, and the legions of dedicated fans," he added.

"I have valued my partnership with Clearlake and the wider ownership group, and the collective decisions and investment we have made to support the immediate and long-term success of the club. I am confident that Chelsea is well positioned for continued success under Clearlake's leadership."

Since the takeover in 2022, Chelsea's highest Premier League finish is fourth in 2024-25, with the club also winning the Uefa Conference League and Fifa Club World Cup that season.

The club have also had a remarkably high turnover of players over the past four years, with the initial strategy focusing on signing young players to long-term contracts.

Chelsea finished 10th in the Premier League last season and appointed Xabi Alonso as their manager in the summer.

Eghbali and Feliciano thanked Boehly for his "time and contribution" as chairman, saying he will "always be a part of the Chelsea story and family".

They added their focus is to "continue investing in the club's infrastructure, sporting performance, player development and delivering long-term success for Chelsea and the club's supporters".

Chelsea have ongoing plans either to redevelop Stamford Bridge or move to a new stadium, which sources say had created tension at times between Boehly's camp and Clearlake.

A club statement said there will be "no changes to the day-to-day operations, leadership or strategy at the club" as a result of Clearlake assuming full control.

Walter, the co-owner and chief executive of global finance firm Guggenheim Partners, where Boehly also began his financial career, last month sold the Los Angeles Lakers for a record $12.5bn (£9.23bn) - a year after buying a majority stake in the NBA franchise.

Separately, US federal prosecutors and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating companies in Walter's business empire.

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