Government prepares to sue Abramovich after he missed deadline to release £2.5bn from Chelsea sale

Sanctioned former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has been put on notice that legal action is coming from the UK government after failing "to do the right thing" and release the £2.5bn from the club's sale to help Ukraine.

There has been a standoff since Mr Abramovich was forced to sell Chelsea in 2022 after being sanctioned at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in a targeting of oligarchs. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer warned in December that Mr Abramovich could be sued if he does not pay up.

Now a government spokesperson has said: "We gave Roman Abramovich his last chance to do the right thing. Once again, he has failed to make the donation he committed to.

"We will now take further steps to ensure that the promise he made at the time of the Chelsea sale is kept." The government issued a licence in December permitting the release of the cash to a new foundation for humanitarian causes in Ukraine but it required Mr Abramovich's approval which has not come. The Russian businessman, 59, was warned at the time that if he did not do so within 90 days, the government would take him to court in the UK.

It is understood that government legal representatives wrote to Mr Abramovich's legal team on Monday saying they are now preparing possible legal action. While Mr Abramovich has always said "all victims of the war in Ukraine.