Roman Abramovich is a well-known name among English football fans. Now sanctioned by the UK government, there are many wondering how the Russian became so rich

Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK government, citing his stakes in steel company Evraz.

It has been claimed that the material the company produces is used in the making of Russian tanks currently deployed in the devasating invasion of Ukraine.

His UK assets have been seized and this includes Chelsea, who can continue to pay players but are not allowed to engage in the selling of players and tickets. Only season-ticket holders are now able to attend home matches.

The club was recently put up for sale by Abramovich, but this has not deterred the government from targeting its Russian owner.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: “I know this brings some uncertainty, but the government will work with the league and clubs to keep football being played while ensuring sanctions hit those intended.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “Today’s sanctions are the latest step in the UK’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people. We will be ruthless in pursuing those who enable the 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing of civilians, destruction of hospitals and illegal occupation of sovereign allies.”

So who is Abramovich and what led him to be sanctioned?

Why has Roman Abramovich been sanctioned?

Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has stakes in steel manufacturer Evraz ( Image: ANTHONY ANEX/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Roman Abramovich’s ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin are well-known, but it appears that his connection to steel company Evraz may have been the straw that broke the oligarch’s back.

The war in Ukraine has seen devastation across the country in many of its major cities, as Putin bombs civilian areas. Hundreds have been 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ed and millions of refugees have fled west to neighbouring countries.

A high court judge said that the Russian oil entrepreneur had “very good relations” with and “privileged access to” Putin in a 2012 hearing. In the same hearing, however, the judge stated that Abramovich did not have access sufficient enough to “pull the presidential strings”.

The Russian oligarch is one of seven people to be included in fresh sanctions against Putin’s Russia.

The government said: “Roman Abramovich has stakes in steel giant Evraz, Norilsk Nickel and owns Chelsea FC. He sold a 73% stake in Russian oil firm Sibneft to state-owned gas titan Gazprom for £9.87 billion in 2005.

“His net worth is an estimated £9.4 billion. He is one of the few oligarchs from the 1990s to maintain prominence under Putin. None of our allies have yet sanctioned Abramovich.”

Calls to sanction the Chelsea owner were made in the House of Commons in the weeks leading up to today’s announcement.

Controversy was caused when Boris Johnson came under fire for a false claim about Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.

The Prime Minister told the House of Commons that the billionaire Chelsea FC owner was on a list of sanctions by the UK government, a statement was not true at the time.

Abramovich has previously faced visa issues, but not sanctions. Downing Street had to correct the claim, saying that “the Prime Minister misspoke”.

Raising a point of order, Bryant said: “The Prime Minister said that Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned. As I understand it that has not happened.

“I am sure the prime minister was completely inadvertent in giving a false indication… But it would be helpful if the prime minister could correct the record.”

What is Roman Abramovich’s net worth?

Abramovich is hugely wealthy thanks to his success with oil ( Image: Getty Images Europe)

Roman Abramovich’s current net worth is estimated to be around £10.7 billion, according to Forbes.

The magazine also believes Abramovich to be the 142nd richest person on Earth.

His financial success led him to purchase Chelsea in 2003, making a huge impact on the English football scene.

Since he took over one of London’s biggest football clubs, Abramovich’s Chelsea has won trophy after trophy.

The Blues were already experiencing success in the years leading up to the takeover, but there is no doubt they owe a different kind of success to the players and managers they have been able to bring in since the oligarch drastically expanded their wealth in 2003.

Abramovich is known for the type of lavish expenditure his net worth would allow, owning a yacht worth over £500 million, and he is also known to have homes in the UK, France, the US, Caribbean and his home country of Russia.

The book Londongrad, first published in 2009 by Mark Hollingsworth and Stewart Lansley, claims that Abramovich is responsible for the ‘world’s most expensive takeaway’, when he reportedly ordered sushi from London to be delivered by private jet to where he was in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.

The order is believed to have cost around £40,000.

Who is Roman Abramovich?

Roman Abramovich, then governor of the Chukotka region, speaking to Putin in 2005 ( Image: AFP/Getty Images)

Abramovich is a 55-year-old Russian billionaire, alleged to have ‘father and son’ ties to Russia’s President Putin. A claim he has distanced himself from.

Abramovich was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 in 1966, but spent most of his upbringing as an orphan when his mother died of blood poisoning, the young Roman was aged just three years old at the time. His father died around the same time in an accident on a construction site.

He was adopted by his Uncle Leiba and his wife Ludmilla, reported to be a former beauty Queen, before moving to Moscow to live with his Uncle Abram in 1974.

Abramovich then attended national service in the Red Army, before moving into business.

How did Roman Abramovich earn his money?

Abramovich, like many Russian businessmen, saw great opportunity in the breakup of Soviet Russia ( Image: Mikhail Svetlov/Getty)

The source of Abramovich’s wealth is one of the most significant political events in history, the breakup of the Soviet Union.

When the Soviet Union broke up in 1991, its natural energy reserves were broken up and sold off to investors. This created huge wealth and opportunities for businessmen like Abramovich, who bought the undervalued assets and were able to create large profits.

His early days as a businessman saw him buy and sell retreaded tyres and establish a toy company, before setting up the oil-trading firm ABK.

According to Londongrad, Abramovich made huge returns by buying oil and controlled prices, before selling them on the unregulated world market, obtaining a license to export oil “through his connections with a customs official”.

The businessman has been careful to distance himself from the claims of his ties to Putin and he won an apology in a defamation settlement in December 2021 when journalist Catherine Belton published claims in book called ‘Putin’s People’.

It claimed that Abramovich only bought Chelsea under the instruction of Putin, repeating an allegation made by another Russian billionaire, Sergei Pugachev.

Publisher HarperCollins apologised and said that the “highly regarded and critically acclaimed” work by Belton “contained some inaccurate information”.

They said that the new edition of the book “will include a more detailed explanation of Mr Abramovich’s motivations for buying the club”.

Abramovich’s representatives, meanwhile, said: “Mr Abramovich’s ambition with Chelsea Football Club has always been clear and transparent: to create world-class teams on the pitch and to ensure the club plays a positive role in all of its communities.”