Clearlake Moves for Total Chelsea Control as Boehly Prepares Exit
Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and fellow director Mark Walter have entered negotiations to sell their stakes in Chelsea Football Club to majority owner Clearlake Capital, people familiar with the matter confirmed.
The transaction, which could value the Premier League side at more than £5 billion ($6.5 billion), would end four years of fractured shared management at Stamford Bridge and hand full operational control to the California-based private equity firm.
Clearlake, managed by co-founders Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano, holds a 61.5% controlling interest in the club. Boehly and Walter each retain approximately 12.8% through the BlueCo 22 purchasing consortium, with Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss holding the remaining 12.8%.
Despite Clearlake’s majority equity position, the initial purchase agreement signed during the May 2022 takeover from sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich granted equal governance rights to Boehly’s faction.
That shared operational arrangement frayed over two years of clashes regarding squad construction, executive hires, and stadium redevelopment plans. Boehly personally directed transfer strategy during his initial months as interim sporting director, overseeing more than £1.5 billion in squad spending that yielded inconsistent pitch performance and a 10th-place Premier League finish last season.
Negotiations over a buyout resumed after Walter moved to liquidate high-value holdings to pay off lenders following a U.S. Department of Justice investigation. Federal prosecutors are examining $21 billion in undisclosed loans issued by Walter’s insurance businesses to related parties.
Last week, Walter agreed to sell the Los Angeles Lakers to venture capitalist Joshua Kushner and former Disney chief Bob Iger for $12.5 billion, laying the groundwork for a broader withdrawal from joint sports assets shared with Boehly.
A completed transfer would raise Clearlake’s equity above 86%, resolving the boardroom impasse ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League opener against Fulham on August 24 under new manager Xabi Alonso.
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