In economics , a commodity is an economic good , usually a resource , that specifically has full or substantial fungibility : that is, the market treats instances of the good as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them.
143-595: Roman Arkadyevich Abramovich (Russian: Роман Аркадьевич Абрамович , IPA: [rɐˈman ɐrˈkadʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ɐbrɐˈmovʲɪtɕ] ; born 24 October 1966) is a Russian oligarch and politician. He is the former owner of Chelsea , a Premier League football club in London , England, and is the primary owner of the private investment company Millhouse . He is sanctioned by the US , EU, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ukraine. He has Russian, Israeli and Portuguese citizenship. He
286-462: A UEFA Cup Winners' Cup triumph, with another replayed win, this time over Real Madrid in Athens. The late 1970s through to the '80s was a turbulent period for Chelsea. An ambitious redevelopment of Stamford Bridge threatened the financial stability of the club, star players were sold and the team were relegated. Further problems were caused by a notorious hooligan element among the support, which
429-530: A historic rivalry with Leeds United . In terms of club value, Chelsea is the ninth-most-valuable football club in the world (as of 2024 ), worth $ 3.13 billion, and is the ninth-highest-earning football club in the world. In 1904, Gus Mears acquired the Stamford Bridge athletics stadium in Fulham with the aim of turning it into a football ground. An offer to lease it to nearby Fulham F.C.
572-423: A rivalry with Liverpool has grown following repeated clashes in cup competitions. Fellow West London clubs Brentford , Fulham and Queens Park Rangers are considered rivals, but less so in recent times as matches have only taken place intermittently due to the teams often being in separate divisions. Commodities The price of a commodity good is typically determined as a function of its market as
715-432: A 50 mg tablet of calcium is of equal value to a consumer no matter what company produces and markets it, and as such, multivitamins are now sold in bulk and are available at any supermarket with little brand differentiation. Following this trend, nanomaterials are emerging from carrying premium profit margins for market participants to a status of commodification. There is a spectrum of commoditization, rather than
858-439: A 9% win percentage. Lampard's win percentage was the worst for any Chelsea manager who managed three games or more. Chelsea scored a record-low 38 goals across the entire season and finished in the bottom half of the table for the first time since 1995–96. Mauricio Pochettino was announced as Lampard's replacement on 1 July 2023 on a two-year contract. He led Chelsea to a 6th-place finish after winning their final five games of
1001-408: A binary distinction of "commodity versus differentiable product". Few products have complete undifferentiability and hence fungibility; even electricity can be differentiated in the market based on its method of generation (e.g., fossil fuel, wind, solar), in markets where energy choice lets a buyer opt (and pay more) for renewable methods if desired. Many products' degree of commoditization depends on
1144-649: A commodity is an object or a good or service ("product" or "activity" ) produced by human labour . Objects are external to man. However, some objects attain " use value " to persons in this world, when they are found to be "necessary, useful or pleasant in life". "Use value" makes an object "an object of human wants", or "a means of subsistence in the widest sense". As society developed, people found that they could trade goods and services for other goods and services. At this stage, these goods and services became "commodities". According to Marx, commodities are defined as objects which are offered for sale or are "exchanged in
1287-576: A company making dolls. Within a few years his wealth spread from oil conglomerates to pig farms. He has traded in timber, sugar, food stuffs and other products. In 1992, he was arrested and sent to prison in a case of theft of government property. According to two different sources, Abramovich first met Berezovsky either at a meeting with the Russian businessmen in 1993 or in the summer of 1995. Berezovsky and Abramovich registered an offshore company , Runicom Ltd., with five subsidiaries. Abramovich headed
1430-476: A decade, where commodities as a whole trade at a price that is greater than their long term moving average . A Super Cycle will usually occur when there is large industrial and commercial change in a country or world that requires more resources to support the change. As prices rise, goods and services that rely on commodities rise with them. There have been four super cycles over the last 120 years worldwide. The first commodity super cycle started in late 1890 and
1573-458: A difficult childhood that I helped Chukotka, some believe it's because I stole money that I helped Chukotka. None of these is real. When you come out and you see a situation and there are 50,000 people, you want to do something. I haven't seen anything worse than what I saw there in my life." –Abramovich, on his political and charitable effort in Chukotka. In 1999, Abramovich was elected to
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#17327972879971716-556: A friend of the exile. "It is denied that Mr Abramovich made or was party to the alleged explicit or implicit coercive threats or intimidation," he states. According to court-papers submitted by Abramovich, Abramovich mentions in the court-papers: Prior to the August 1995 decree [of Sibneft's creation], the defendant [Abramovich] informed Mr Berezovsky that he wished to acquire a controlling interest in Sibneft on its creation. In return for
1859-603: A large market garden) with the aim of staging football matches on the now 12.5 acre (51,000 m ) site. Stamford Bridge was designed for the Mears family by the noted football architect Archibald Leitch , who had designed Ibrox , Craven Cottage and Hampden Park . Most football clubs were founded first, and then sought grounds in which to play, but Chelsea were founded for Stamford Bridge. Starting with an open bowl-like design and one grandstand with seating, Stamford Bridge had an original capacity of around 100,000, making it
2002-438: A market". In the marketplace, where commodities are sold, "use value" is not helpful in facilitating the sale of commodities. Accordingly, in addition to having use value, commodities must have an "exchange value"—a value that could be expressed in the market. Prior to Marx, many economists debated as to what elements made up exchange value. Adam Smith maintained that exchange value was made up of rent , profit , labour and
2145-457: A new ownership group, led by Todd Boehly , Clearlake Capital , Mark Walter and Hansjörg Wyss , to acquire the club. The group was later known as BlueCo . The UK government approved the £4.25bn takeover, ending Abramovich's 19-year ownership of the club. Bruce Buck , who served as chairman since 2003, was replaced by Boehly, while long-serving club director and de facto sporting director Marina Granovskaia left, as did Petr Čech from
2288-565: A profit in the first nine years of Abramovich's ownership, and made record losses of £140m in June 2005. I am a fan of special nature. I'm excited before every single game. The trophy at the end is less important than the process itself. —Abramovich discussing two trophy-laden years at Chelsea (2006). In 2009, under caretaker manager Guus Hiddink , Chelsea won another FA Cup . In 2009–10 , his successor Carlo Ancelotti led them to their first Premier League and FA Cup Double , becoming
2431-579: A reputation for signing star players and attracted large crowds. The club had the highest average attendance in English football in ten separate seasons including 1907–08 , 1909–10 , 1911–12 , 1912–13 , 1913–14 and 1919–20 . They were FA Cup semi-finalists in 1920 and 1932 and remained in the First Division throughout the 1930s, but success eluded the club in the inter-war years. Former Arsenal and England centre-forward Ted Drake
2574-515: A revamped £500m stadium at Stamford Bridge with a capacity of up to 60,000. On 15 July 2018, the renewal of Abramovich's British visa by the Home Office , and his subsequent withdrawal of the application, in May 2018 Chelsea halted plans to build a £500m stadium in south-west London due to the "unfavourable investment climate" and the lack of assurances about Abramovich's immigration status. Abramovich
2717-615: A strong start to the 2024-25 season with 22 points in 12 match's in the Premier League . Chelsea have only had one home ground, Stamford Bridge, where they have played since the team's foundation. The stadium was officially opened on 28 April 1877 and for the next 28 years it was used by the London Athletic Club as an arena for athletics meetings. In 1904, the ground was acquired by businessman Gus Mears and his brother Joseph , who had purchased nearby land (formerly
2860-475: A then-British record transfer fee of around £30 million (€35.3 million). In the year ending June 2005, Chelsea posted record losses of £140 million (€165 million) and the club was not expected to record a trading profit before 2010, although this decreased to reported losses of £80.2 million (€94.3 million) in the year ending June 2006. In a December 2006 interview, Abramovich stated that he expected Chelsea's transfer spending to fall in
3003-546: A treble of League, FA Cup and League Cup going into the final stages of the 1964–65 season, winning the League Cup but faltering late on in the other two. In three seasons the side were beaten in three major semi-finals and were FA Cup runners-up. Under Docherty's successor, Dave Sexton , Chelsea won the FA Cup in 1970 , beating Leeds United 2–1 in a final replay. The following year, Chelsea took their first European honour,
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#17327972879973146-560: A trustee of the Moscow Jewish Museum . Abramovich decided to establish a forest of some 25,000 new and rehabilitated trees, in memory of Lithuania's Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust, plus a virtual memorial and tribute to Lithuanian Jewry (Seed a Memory) enabling people from all over the world to commemorate their ancestors' personal stories by naming a tree and including their name in the memorial. Abramovich entered
3289-755: A whole: well-established physical commodities have actively traded spot and derivative markets. The wide availability of commodities typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name ) other than price. Most commodities are raw materials , basic resources, agricultural , or mining products, such as iron ore , sugar , or grains like rice and wheat . Commodities can also be mass-produced unspecialized products such as chemicals and computer memory . Popular commodities include crude oil , corn , gold and Bitcoin . Other definitions of commodity include something useful or valued and an alternative term for an economic good or service available for purchase in
3432-423: Is a list of companies trading globally in commodities, descending by size as of October 28, 2011. In the original and simplified sense, commodities were things of value, of uniform quality, that were produced in large quantities by many different producers; the items from each different producer were considered equivalent. On a commodity exchange, it is the underlying standard stated in the contract that defines
3575-584: Is among the most widely supported football clubs in the world. It has the sixth-highest average attendance in the history of English football , and regularly attract over 40,000 fans to Stamford Bridge; they were the ninth best-supported Premier League team in the 2023–24 season, with an average gate of 39,700. Chelsea's traditional fanbase comes from all over the Greater London area including working-class parts such as Hammersmith and Battersea , wealthier areas like Chelsea and Kensington , and from
3718-416: Is an instrument of labour"), even though they may not be produced specifically for the market, or be non-reproducible goods. Marx's analysis of the commodity is intended to help solve the problem of what establishes the economic value of goods, using the labour theory of value . This problem was extensively debated by Adam Smith , David Ricardo and Karl Rodbertus-Jagetzow among others. All three of
3861-464: Is considered to have a good relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin , an allegation Abramovich has denied. Roman Arkadyevich Abramovich was born on 24 October 1966 in Saratov , Russian SFSR , Soviet Union (present-day Saratov, Russia). His mother, Irina (1939−1967), was a music teacher who died when Abramovich was one year old. His father, Aaron Abramovich Leibovich (1937−1969), worked in
4004-592: Is located in Cobham, Surrey . Chelsea moved to Cobham in 2004. Their previous training ground in Harlington was taken over by QPR in 2005. The new training facilities in Cobham were completed in 2007. Stamford Bridge hosted the FA Cup final from 1920 to 1922, has held 10 FA Cup Semi-finals (most recently in 1978 ), ten FA Charity Shield matches (the last in 1970 ), and three England international matches,
4147-613: Is one of five clubs and the first English club to have won all three pre-1999 main European club competitions, the "European Treble" of the European Cup/UEFA Champions League , European/UEFA Cup Winners' Cup , and UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League . They are the only club to have won all three major European competitions twice. They are the only London club to have won the Champions League and
4290-627: Is one of many Russian oligarchs named in the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act , CAATSA, signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2017. He is one of the Navalny 35 . Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, on 10 March 2022 Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK as part of a group of seven Russian oligarchs. Abramovich had his UK assets frozen and a travel ban
4433-576: Is the Colour"). Chelsea released the song " No One Can Stop Us Now " in 1994 for reaching the 1994 FA Cup final . It reached number 23 in the UK Singles Chart. In the build-up to the 1997 FA Cup final , the song " Blue Day ", performed by Suggs and members of the Chelsea squad, reached number 22 in the UK chart. In 2000, Chelsea released the song " Blue Tomorrow ". It reached number 22 in
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4576-457: The 2005–06 season and marked a return to the older design, used from 1953 to 1986, featuring a blue heraldic lion holding a staff. For the centenary season this was accompanied by the words '100 Years' and 'Centenary 2005–2006' on the top and bottom of the crest respectively. Chelsea have always worn blue shirts, although they originally used the paler eton blue , which was taken from the racing colours of then club president, Earl Cadogan , and
4719-400: The 2009–10 season, the third highest in the division, and 27 banning orders were issued, the fifth-highest in the division. Chelsea have long-standing rivalries with North London clubs Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur . A strong rivalry with Leeds United dates back to several heated and controversial matches in the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1970 FA Cup final . More recently
4862-468: The 2021 FIFA Club World Cup (the first for the club) in Abu Dhabi after beating Brazilian Palmeiras 2–1. On 18 April 2021, Chelsea announced it would be joining a new European Super League , a league competition comprising the biggest European clubs. After a backlash from supporters, the club announced their withdrawal days later. The club opted against furloughing their non-matchday staff during
5005-591: The COVID-19 pandemic , with the decision reportedly coming from Abramovich himself. Chelsea, one of the first clubs to help the National Health Service , lent the club-owned Millennium Hotel for the NHS staff. "[Chelsea] have been a success machine for the last 10–20 years. That doesn't just come with money, we've seen at Manchester United and Arsenal where they've put billions into the team and not had
5148-922: The Club World Cup. Domestically, the club has won six league titles , eight FA Cups , five League Cups , and four FA Community Shields . Internationally, they have won the UEFA Champions League , the UEFA Europa League , the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Super Cup twice each, and the FIFA Club World Cup once. In terms of overall trophies won, Chelsea is the fifth-most successful club in English football . The club has rivalries with neighbouring teams Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur , and
5291-525: The European Union followed Britain's suit and also imposed sanctions on Abramovich. On 16 March Abramovich was added to the Swiss blacklist. On 5 April 2022 Abramovich came under New Zealand sanctions for close ties with Vladimir Putin. On 19 October, Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed two decrees imposing personal sanctions against 256 Russian businessmen. Among them was Abramovich, being the only person on
5434-621: The Fulham Road , which places constraints on expansion due to health and safety regulations. The club have consistently affirmed their desire to keep Chelsea at their current home, but have nonetheless been linked with a move to various nearby sites, including the Earls Court Exhibition Centre , Battersea Power Station and the Chelsea Barracks . In October 2011, a proposal from the club to buy back
5577-604: The League Cup final , which they lost on penalties to Manchester City and won the Europa League for a second time, beating Arsenal 4–1 in the final. Sarri then left the club to become manager of Juventus and was replaced by former Chelsea player Frank Lampard . In Lampard's first season , he guided Chelsea to fourth place in the Premier League and reached the FA Cup final , losing 2–1 to Arsenal. Lampard
5720-517: The London Monarchs American Football team for the 1997 season . The previous owner Abramovich and the club's then executive board determined that a larger stadium is necessary in order for Chelsea to stay competitive with rival clubs who have significantly larger stadia, such as Arsenal and Manchester United . Owing to its location next to a main road and two railway lines, fans can only enter Stamford Bridge via
5863-519: The Premier League , the top tier of English football . Founded in 1905, the team play their home games at Stamford Bridge . The club won their first major honour, the League championship , in 1955 . They won the FA Cup for the first time in 1970 , won their first European honour, the Cup Winners' Cup , in 1971 , and became the third English club to win the Club World Cup in 2022 . Chelsea
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6006-702: The State Duma as the representative for the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug , an impoverished region in the Russian Far East . He started the charity Pole of Hope to help the people of Chukotka, especially children, and in December 2000, was elected governor of Chukotka , replacing Aleksandr Nazarov . Abramovich was the governor of Chukotka from 2000 to 2008. It is believed that he invested over US$ 1.3 billion (€925 million) in
6149-409: The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Super Cup in 1998 , and the FA Cup in 2000 . They mounted a strong title challenge in 1998–99, finishing four points behind champions Manchester United, and made their first appearance in the UEFA Champions League . Vialli was sacked in favour of Claudio Ranieri , who guided Chelsea to the 2002 FA Cup final and Champions League qualification in 2002–03. With
6292-577: The brand , the user interface and the perceived quality. The demand for one type of stereo may be much larger than demand for another. The price of a commodity good is typically determined as a function of its market as a whole. Well-established physical commodities have actively traded spot and derivative markets. Soft commodities are goods that are grown, such as wheat , or rice . Hard commodities are mined . Examples include gold , silver , helium , oil , and Bitcoin . Energy commodities include electricity, gas, coal and oil. Electricity has
6435-564: The home counties . There are numerous official supporters clubs in the United Kingdom and all over the world. Between 2007 and 2012, Chelsea were ranked fourth worldwide in annual replica kit sales, with an average of 910,000. As of 2023, Chelsea has 118.9 million followers on social media, the fourth highest among football clubs. During the 1970s and 1980s in particular, Chelsea supporters were associated with football hooliganism . The club's " football firm ", originally known as
6578-529: The pitch , the turnstiles and Chelsea's naming rights are now owned by Chelsea Pitch Owners , a non-profit organisation in which fans are the shareholders. The CPO was created to ensure the stadium could never again be sold to developers. As a condition for using the Chelsea FC name, the club has to play its first team matches at Stamford Bridge, which means that if the club moves to a new stadium, they may have to change their name. Chelsea's training ground
6721-516: The 1966 FA Cup semi-final they wore blue and black stripes, based on Inter Milan 's kit. In the mid-1970s, the away strip was a red, white and green kit inspired by the Hungarian national side of the 1950s. Other away kits include an all jade strip worn from 1986 to 1989, red and white diamonds from 1990 to 1992, graphite and tangerine from 1994 to 1996, and luminous yellow from 2007 to 2008. The graphite and tangerine strip has appeared in lists of
6864-494: The 2023–24 season, which earned the club a Conference League play-off round qualification . After clashing with the sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley over strategy and management of the young squad, Pochettino agreed to leave the club at the end of the season. On 3 June 2024, Enzo Maresca was announced as Pochettino's replacement, with the Italian set to start his activity on 1 July 2024. Chelsea had
7007-511: The Academy of Football took over the administration of the Konoplyov football academy at Primorsky, near Togliatti , Samara Oblast , where over 1,000 youths are in residence, following the death at 38 of its founder, Yuri Konoplev. "Everyone's got their own reason. Some believe it's because I spent some of my childhood in the far north that I helped Chukotka, some believe it's because I had
7150-548: The Chelsea Shed Boys, and subsequently as the Chelsea Headhunters , were nationally notorious for football violence, alongside hooligan firms from other clubs such as West Ham United 's Inter City Firm and Millwall 's Bushwackers , before, during and after matches. The increase of hooligan incidents in the 1980s led chairman Ken Bates to propose erecting an electric fence to deter them from invading
7293-471: The Latin commoditas , meaning "suitability, convenience, advantage". The Latin word commodus (from which English gets other words including commodious and accommodate ) meant variously "appropriate", "proper measure, time, or condition", and "advantage, benefit". In economics, the term commodity is used specifically for economic goods that have full or partial but substantial fungibility ; that is,
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#17327972879977436-487: The Moscow affiliate of the Swiss firm, Runicom. In August 1995, Boris Yeltsin decreed the creation of Sibneft , of which Abramovich and Berezovsky were thought to be top executives. In 1995, Abramovich and Berezovsky acquired a controlling interest in the large oil company Sibneft in a rigged auction. The deal took place within the controversial loans-for-shares program and each partner paid US$ 100 million for half of
7579-599: The National Academy of Football. The organization sponsors youth sports programs throughout the country and has constructed more than fifty football pitches in various cities and towns. It also funds training programs for coaches, prints instruction materials, renovates sports facilities and takes top coaches and students on trips to visit professional football clubs in England, the Netherlands and Spain. In 2006
7722-402: The Premier League disqualified Abramovich as a director of Chelsea. On 7 May 2022, Chelsea announced that a new ownership group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital had agreed on the terms to acquire the club. In March 2004, Sibneft agreed to a three-year sponsorship deal worth €41.3 million (US$ 58 million) with the Russian team CSKA Moscow . Although the company explained that
7865-500: The Second Division championship in 1988–89. After a long-running legal battle, Bates reunited the stadium freehold with the club in 1992 by doing a deal with the banks of the property developers, who had been bankrupted by a market crash. In the mid-1990s Chelsea fan and businessman Matthew Harding became a director and loaned the club £26 million to build the new North Stand and invest in new players. Chelsea's form in
8008-463: The UK Singles Chart. At matches, Chelsea fans sing chants such as " Carefree " (to the tune of " Lord of the Dance ", whose lyrics were probably written by supporter Mick Greenaway), "Ten Men Went to Mow", "We All Follow the Chelsea" (to the tune of " Land of Hope and Glory "), "Zigga Zagga", and the celebratory "Celery". The latter is often accompanied by fans throwing celery at each other, although
8151-516: The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy had requested that the US government not levy sanctions against Abramovich given his importance to war relief efforts. We're all in – 100% – every minute of every match. Our vision as owners is clear: we want to make the fans proud. —Todd Boehly, addressing the press after the takeover. On 7 May 2022, Chelsea confirmed that terms have been agreed for
8294-422: The above-mentioned economists rejected the theory that labour composed 100% of the exchange value of any commodity. In varying degrees, these economists turned to supply and demand to establish the price of commodities. Marx held that the "price" and the "value" of a commodity were not synonymous. Price of any commodity would vary according to the imbalance of supply to demand at any one period of time. The "value" of
8437-596: The aluminium industry at the time that would have had to "legalise" their stake. Abramovich's lawyers later claimed that "legalisation" meant structuring protection payments to Berezovsky to ensure they complied with Western antimoney-laundering regulations. The Times also observed: Mr Abramovich discloses that there was a showdown at St Moritz airport in Switzerland in 2001 when Mr [Badri] Patarkatsishvili asked him to pay US$ 1.3 billion (€925 million) to Mr Berezovsky. "The defendant agreed to pay this amount on
8580-506: The basis that it would be the final request for payment by Mr Berezovsky and that he and Mr Patarkatsishvili would cease to associate themselves publicly with him and his business interests." The payment was duly made. Mr Abramovich was also willing to pay off Mr Patarkatsishvili. He states that he agreed to pay US$ 585 million (€416 million) "by way of final payment". Mr Abramovich denies that he helped himself to Mr Berezovsky's interests in Sibneft and aluminium or that he threatened
8723-564: The business world during his army service. He first worked as a street-trader, and then as a mechanic at a local factory. Abramovich attended the Gubkin Institute of Oil and Gas in Moscow, then traded commodities for the Swiss trading firm Runicom. In 1988, as perestroika created opportunities for privatization in the Soviet Union, Abramovich gained a chance to legitimise his old business. He and his first wife, Olga, set up
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#17327972879978866-639: The buyer's mentality and means. For example, milk, eggs, and notebook paper are not differentiated by many customers; for them, the product is fungible and lowest price is the main decisive factor in the purchasing choice. Other customers take into consideration other factors besides price, such as environmental sustainability and animal welfare. To these customers, distinctions such as " organic versus not" or " cage free versus not" count toward differentiating brands of milk or eggs, and percentage of recycled content or Forest Stewardship Council certification count toward differentiating brands of notebook paper. This
9009-449: The claims were agreed in December 2021 to be stated as having no factual basis in future editions. In 2021, Abramovich was criticized for trying to enter Chelsea into the newly announced European Super League . The competition was widely scrutinized for encouraging greediness among the richer, larger football clubs, which would have undermined the significance of existing football competitions; however, just two days later, Abramovich pulled
9152-410: The club facing an apparent financial crisis, Bates unexpectedly sold Chelsea F.C. in June 2003 for £60 million. In so doing, he reportedly recognised a personal profit of £17 million on the club he had bought for £1 in 1982 (his stake had been diluted to just below 30% over the years). The club's new owner was Russian oligarch and billionaire Roman Abramovich , who took on responsibility for
9295-704: The club out of the new competition, with other English clubs following suit, causing the league to suspend operations. In 2022, it was reported that Abramovich was owed $ 2 billion from Chelsea. According to Forbes , Abramovich's loan was insurance in case the British government considered sanctioning him due to his close relationship with the Putin regime in Russia. On 26 February 2022, during the Russo-Ukrainian War , Abramovich handed over "stewardship and care" of
9438-423: The club released a statement saying that the new stadium project had been put on hold indefinitely, citing "the current unfavourable investment climate." In July 2022, it was reported that the club's new owner Todd Boehly had appointed American architect Janet Marie Smith to oversee the renovation of the stadium. Chelsea has had four main crests , which all underwent minor variations. The first, adopted when
9581-583: The club to the Chelsea Charitable Foundation. Abramovich released an official statement on 2 March 2022 confirming that he was selling the club due to the ongoing situation in Ukraine. Although the UK government froze Abramovich's assets in the United Kingdom on 10 March due to his "close ties with [the] Kremlin", it was made clear that the Chelsea club would be allowed to operate in activities which were football related. On 12 March,
9724-479: The club was founded, was the image of a Chelsea Pensioner , the army veterans who reside at the nearby Royal Hospital Chelsea . This contributed to the club's original "pensioner" nickname, and remained for the next half-century, though it never appeared on the shirts. When Ted Drake became Chelsea manager in 1952, he began to modernise the club. Believing the Chelsea pensioner crest to be old-fashioned, he insisted that it be replaced. A stop-gap badge which comprised
9867-414: The club were under threat of eviction from the stadium. Following a long legal battle, it was not until the mid-1990s that Chelsea's future at Stamford Bridge was secured and renovation work resumed. The north, west and southern parts of the ground were converted into all-seater stands and moved closer to the pitch, a process completed by 2001. The East Stand was retained from the 1970s development. In 1996,
10010-414: The club's £80 million of debt, quickly paying some of it. Sergei Pugachev alleged Chelsea was bought on Putin's orders, an allegation Abramovich has denied. Bates mentioned that Abramovich was in talks to buy Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur before he bought Chelsea in a deal sealed in a day. Over £100 million was spent on new players, but Ranieri was unable to deliver any trophies, and
10153-499: The club, Abramovich was present at nearly every Chelsea game and showed visible emotion during matches, a sign taken by supporters to indicate a genuine love for the sport, and often visited the players in the dressing room following each match. This stopped for a time in early 2007, when press reports appeared of a feud between Abramovich and manager Mourinho regarding the performance of certain players such as Andriy Shevchenko. In March 2017, Chelsea announced it had received approval for
10296-443: The commodity markets through a commodity price index . In order to diversify their investments and mitigate the risks associated with inflationary debasement of currencies, pension funds and sovereign wealth funds allocate capital to non-listed assets such as a commodities and commodity-related infrastructure. The inventory of commodities, with low inventories typically leading to more volatile future prices and increasing
10439-404: The commodity, not any quality inherent in a specific producer's product. Commodities exchanges include: Markets for trading commodities can be very efficient , particularly if the division into pools matches demand segments . These markets will quickly respond to changes in supply and demand to find an equilibrium price and quantity. In addition, investors can gain passive exposure to
10582-587: The company, above the stake's stock market value of US$ 150 million at the time, and rapidly turned it up into billions. The fast-rising value of the company led many observers, in hindsight, to suggest that the real cost of the company should have been in the billions of dollars (it was worth US$ 2.7 billion at that time). Abramovich later admitted in court that he paid billions of dollars of bribes to government officials and gangsters to acquire and protect his assets. As of 2000, Sibneft annually produced US$ 3 billion worth of oil. The Times claimed that he
10725-424: The competition before it started. Chelsea failed to build on this success, and spent the remainder of the 1950s in mid-table. Drake was dismissed in 1961 and replaced by player-coach Tommy Docherty . Docherty built a new team around the group of talented young players emerging from the club's youth set-up, and Chelsea challenged for honours throughout the 1960s, enduring several near-misses. They were on course for
10868-399: The costs of wear and tear on the instruments of husbandry. David Ricardo , a follower of Adam Smith, modified Smith's approach on this point by alleging that labour alone is the content of the exchange value of any good or service. While maintaining that all exchange value in commodities was derived directly from the hands of the people that made the commodity, Ricardo noted that only part of
11011-533: The decision was made at management level, some viewed the deal as an attempt by Abramovich to counter accusations of being "unpatriotic" which were made at the time of the Chelsea purchase. UEFA rules prevent one person owning more than one team participating in UEFA competitions, so Abramovich has no equity interest in CSKA. A lawyer, Alexandre Garese, is one of his partners in CSKA. Following an investigation, Abramovich
11154-399: The defendant [Abramovich] agreeing to provide Mr Berezovsky with funds he required in connection with the cash flow of [his TV company] ORT, Mr Berezovsky agreed he would use his personal and political influence to support the project and assist in the passage of the necessary legislative steps leading to the creation of Sibneft. Mr Patarkatsishvili did ... provide assistance to the defendant in
11297-513: The defendant's acquisition of assets in the Russian aluminium industry. In 2015, Abramovich invested and led a $ 30 million round of funding with businessman OD Kobo Chairman of PIR Equities. Other partners include several well-known people from the music industry, among them David Guetta , Nicki Minaj , Tiësto , Avicii , will.i.am , Benny Andersson , Dave Holmes and others. Also StoreDot, founded by Doron Myersdorf, where Abramovich has invested over $ 30 million. In June 2003, Abramovich became
11440-647: The deportees died in the camps. Among them was the grandfather of Abramovich. Nachman Leibovich died in 1942 in the NKVD camp in the settlement of Resheti, Krasnoyarsk Territory. Having lost both parents before the age of 4, Abramovich was raised by relatives and spent much of his youth in the Komi Republic in northern Russia. Abramovich is the Chairman of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia , and
11583-593: The early 70s. In the 1970s as world economies grew they needed more materials and energy to support expansion leading to increases in prices across the board. This boom came to an end as foreign investments fled as extractive industries became nationalized. The most recent of commodity super cycles began in 2000 as China joined the World Trade Organization . China was also in the beginning of their boom as industry and expansion took off. Workers moved into cities as emerging industries took off and offered
11726-610: The economic council of the Komi ASSR , and died when Roman was three. Both parents were of Jewish descent. Roman's maternal grandparents were Ukrainian Jews Vasily Mikhailenko and Faina Borisovna Grutman. It was to Saratov in the early days of World War II that Roman's maternal grandmother fled from Ukraine. Irina was then three years old. Roman's paternal grandparents, Nachman Leibovich and Toybe (Tatyana) Stepanovna Abramovich, were Belarusian Jews . They lived in Belarus and, after
11869-451: The exchange value of the commodity was paid to the worker who made the commodity. The other part of the value of this particular commodity was labour that was not paid to the worker—unpaid labour. This unpaid labour was retained by the owner of the means of production. In capitalist society, the capitalist owns the means of production and therefore the unpaid labour is retained by the capitalist as rent or as profit. The means of production means
12012-457: The first English top-flight club to score 100 league goals in a season since 1963 . In 2012, Roberto Di Matteo led Chelsea to their seventh FA Cup , and their first UEFA Champions League title , beating Bayern Munich 4–3 on penalties, the first London club to win the trophy. The following year the club won the UEFA Europa League , making them the first club to hold two major European titles simultaneously and one of five clubs to have won
12155-430: The forepaws a crozier or all within an annulet azure "). In 1986, with Ken Bates owner of the club, Chelsea's crest was changed again as part of another attempt to modernise and because the old rampant lion badge could not be trademarked. The new badge featured a more naturalistic non-heraldic lion, in white and not blue, standing over the C.F.C. initials. This lasted for the next 19 years, with some modifications such as
12298-544: The freehold to the land on which Stamford Bridge sits was voted down by Chelsea Pitch Owners shareholders. In May 2012, the club made a formal bid to purchase Battersea Power Station , with a view to developing the site into a new stadium, but lost out to a Malaysian consortium. The club subsequently announced plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge into a 60,000-seater stadium, and in January 2017 these plans were approved by Hammersmith and Fulham council. However, on 31 May 2018,
12441-553: The ground on Fulham Road , and were elected to the Football League shortly afterwards. Chelsea won promotion to the First Division in their second season, and yo-yoed between the First and Second Divisions in its early years. The team reached the 1915 FA Cup final , where they lost to Sheffield United at Old Trafford, and finished third in the First Division in 1920, the club's best league campaign to that point. Chelsea had
12584-666: The initials C.F.C. was adopted for a year. In 1953, the club crest was changed to an upright blue lion looking backwards and holding a staff . It was based on elements in the coat of arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea with the "lion rampant regardant" taken from the arms of then club president Viscount Chelsea and the staff from the Abbots of Westminster , former Lords of the Manor of Chelsea. It featured three red roses, to represent England, and two footballs. This
12727-552: The last in 1932; it was the venue for an unofficial Victory International in 1946. The 2013 UEFA Women's Champions League final was played at Stamford Bridge as well. The stadium has been used for a variety of other sports. In October 1905 it hosted a rugby union match between the All Blacks and Middlesex, and in 1914 hosted a baseball match between the touring New York Giants and the Chicago White Sox . It
12870-404: The lawsuit. The High Court judge stated that because of the nature of the evidence, the case hinged on whether to believe Berezovsky or Abramovich's evidence. The judge found Berezovsky to be "an unimpressive, and inherently unreliable witness, who regarded truth as a transitory, flexible concept, which could be moulded to suit his current purposes", whereas Abramovich was seen as "a truthful, and on
13013-580: The list, the restrictions against whom will only work after the exchange of all Ukrainian prisoners and bodies of those killed during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In late March 2022, it was reported that Abramovich was house-hunting in Dubai , where his private plane had also been spotted, owing to the city's sanction-free status. In March 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States administration deferred sanctions on Abramovich at
13156-485: The maiden use of its SEMA seizure and forfeiture mechanism. The government alleged that US$ 26 million held by Granite Capital Holdings Ltd was in fact Abramovich's and stated that it "will now consider making a court application to forfeit the [Abramovich Assets] permanently to the Crown." Chelsea F.C. Chelsea Football Club is a professional football club based in Fulham , West London, England. They compete in
13299-503: The market treats their instances as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them. Karl Marx described this property as follows: "From the taste of wheat , it is not possible to tell who produced it, a Russian serf , a French peasant or an English capitalist ." Petroleum and copper are examples of commodity goods: their supply and demand are a part of one universal market. Non-commodity items such as stereo systems have many aspects of product differentiation , such as
13442-455: The market. In such standard works as Alfred Marshall 's Principles of Economics (1920) and Léon Walras 's Elements of Pure Economics ([1926] 1954) 'commodity' serves as general term for an economic good or service. The word commodity came into use in English in the 15th century, from the French commodité , "amenity, convenience". Going further back, the French word derives from
13585-402: The new Premier League was unconvincing, although they did reach the 1994 FA Cup final . The appointment of Ruud Gullit as player-manager in 1996 began an upturn in the team's fortunes. He added several top international players to the side and led the club to their first major honour since 1971, the FA Cup . Gullit was replaced by Gianluca Vialli , whose reign saw Chelsea win the League Cup ,
13728-632: The north stand was renamed the Matthew Harding stand, after the club director and benefactor who was killed in a helicopter crash earlier that year. When Stamford Bridge was redeveloped in the Bates era many additional features were added to the complex including two Millennium & Copthorne hotels , apartments, bars, restaurants, the Chelsea Megastore, and an interactive visitor attraction called Chelsea World of Sport. The intention
13871-528: The owner of the companies that control Chelsea in West London . The previous owner of the club was Ken Bates , who later bought rivals Leeds United . Chelsea immediately embarked on an ambitious programme of commercial development, with the aim of making it a worldwide brand at par with footballing dynasties such as Manchester United and Real Madrid , and also announced plans to build a new state-of-the-art training complex in Cobham, Surrey . Since
14014-664: The particular characteristic that it is usually uneconomical to store, and must therefore be consumed as soon as it is produced. Commoditization occurs as a goods or services market loses differentiation across its supply base, often by the diffusion of the intellectual capital necessary to acquire or produce it efficiently. As such, goods that formerly carried premium margins for market participants have become commodities, such as generic pharmaceuticals and DRAM chips . An article in The New York Times cites multivitamin supplements as an example of commoditization;
14157-435: The period 2000–2006 the average salaries in Chukotka increased from about US$ 165 (€117/£100) per month in 2000 to US$ 826 (€588/£500) per month in 2006. The day after the Russian invasion of Ukraine , Abramovich was contacted by Ukrainian magnates and asked to function as informal envoy to Putin. Abramovich played a key role in the release of Aiden Aslin and other foreign prisoners of war from Russian captivity. Abramovich
14300-644: The pitch, a proposal that the Greater London Council rejected. Since the 1990s, there has been a marked decline in crowd trouble at matches, as a result of stricter policing, CCTV in grounds and the advent of all-seater stadia . In 2007, the club launched the Back to the Shed campaign to improve the atmosphere at home matches, with notable success. According to Home Office statistics, 126 Chelsea fans were arrested for football-related offences during
14443-538: The pitch, the team had fared little better, coming close to relegation to the Third Division for the first time, but in 1983 manager John Neal put together an impressive new team for minimal outlay. Chelsea won the Second Division title in 1983–84 and established themselves in the top division with two top-six finishes, before being relegated again in 1988. The club bounced back immediately by winning
14586-526: The region. Abramovich was awarded the Order of Honour for his "huge contribution to the economic development of the autonomous district [of Chukotka]", by a decree signed by the President of Russia. In early July 2008, it was announced that President Dmitry Medvedev had accepted Abramovich's request to resign as governor of Chukotka, although his various charitable activities in the region would continue. In
14729-791: The revolution, moved to Tauragė , Lithuania , with the Lithuanian spelling of the family name being Abramavičius. In 1940, the Soviet Union (USSR) annexed Lithuania . Just before the Nazi German invasion of the USSR , the Soviets "cleared the anti-Soviet, criminal and socially dangerous element" with whole families being sent to Siberia . Abramovich's grandparents were separated when deported . The father, mother and children – Leib, Abram and Aron (Arkady) – were in different camps. Many of
14872-589: The risk of a " stockout " (inventory exhaustion). According to economist theorists, companies receive a convenience yield by holding inventories of certain commodities. Data on inventories of commodities are not available from one common source, although data is available from various sources. Inventory data on 31 commodities was used in a 2006 study on the relationship between inventories and commodity futures risk premiums. In classical political economy and especially in Karl Marx 's critique of political economy ,
15015-504: The role of technical and performance advisor. The club brought in Graham Potter from Brighton & Hove Albion to replace Tuchel on 8 September 2022. Chelsea won six of the first 11 games of the 2022–23 season , but only five of the remaining 27. Potter would be sacked on 2 April 2023 and eventually be replaced by Frank Lampard as caretaker manager. Under Lampard the club would only win one of their last 11 matches resulting in
15158-455: The same commodity produced by the skilled worker. Marx pointed out, however, that in society at large, an average amount of time that was necessary to produce the commodity would arise. This average time necessary to produce the commodity Marx called the "socially necessary labour time". Socially necessary labour time was the proper basis on which to base the "exchange value" of a given commodity. Commodity Super Cycles are periods of time, around
15301-467: The same commodity would be consistent and would reflect the amount of labour value used to produce that commodity. Prior to Marx, economists noted that the problem with using the "quantity of labour" to establish the value of commodities was that the time spent by an unskilled worker would be longer than the time spent on the same commodity by a skilled worker. Thus, under this analysis, the commodity produced by an unskilled worker would be more valuable than
15444-420: The same time span). His tenure has also been marked by rapid turnover in managers. Detractors have used the term "Chelski" to refer to the new Chelsea under Abramovich, to highlight the modern phenomena of billionaires buying football clubs and "purchasing trophies", by using their personal wealth to snap up marquee players at will and distorting the transfer market, citing the acquisition of Andriy Shevchenko for
15587-482: The second biggest stadium in England after Crystal Palace . The early 1930s saw the construction of a terrace on the southern part of the ground with a roof that covered around 20% of the stand. As the roof resembled that of a corrugated iron shed, the stand eventually became known as the "Shed End", although it is unknown who first coined this name. From the 1960s, it became known as the home of Chelsea's most loyal and vocal supporters. In 1939, another small seated stand
15730-415: The site where the commodity is made, the raw products that are used in the production and the instruments or machines that are used for the production of the commodity. However, not all commodities are reproducible nor were all commodities originally intended to be sold in the market. These priced goods are also treated as commodities, e.g. human labour-power, works of art and natural resources ("earth itself
15873-472: The sponsorship deal. Abramovich also played a large role in bringing Guus Hiddink to Russia to coach the Russia national football team . Piet de Visser , a former head scout of Hiddink's club PSV Eindhoven and now a personal assistant to Abramovich at Chelsea, recommended Hiddink to the Chelsea owner. In addition to his involvement in professional football, Abramovich sponsors a foundation in Russia called
16016-448: The success that Chelsea have had. Chelsea can feel comfortable that they'll have rich owners, but will they have football-smart owners? Because that's what Abramovich has been. — Gary Neville on Abramovich's legacy. "I don't want to throw my money away but it's really about having fun and that means success and trophies." —Roman Abramovich, in an interview with the BBC following
16159-902: The takeover, the club has won 18 major trophies – the UEFA Champions League twice, the UEFA Europa League twice, the UEFA Supercup twice, the FIFA Club World Cup once, the Premier League five times, the FA Cup five times (with 2010 providing the club's first ever league and FA Cup double ), the League Cup three times, and the FA community shield twice, making Chelsea the most successful English trophy winning team during Abramovich's ownership, equal with Manchester United (who have also won 16 major trophies in
16302-587: The takeover. Amidst financial sanctions leveled at Russian oligarchs by Western governments in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , Abramovich stated on 26 February that he would hand over the stewardship of Chelsea to the trustees of the Chelsea Foundation. The trustees did not immediately agree, due to legal concerns regarding the rules of the Charity Commission for England and Wales . A week later, Abramovich wrote-off
16445-487: The three main UEFA trophies. Mourinho returned as manager in 2013 and led Chelsea to League Cup success in March 2015, and the Premier League title two months later. Mourinho was sacked after four months of the following season after a poor start. In November 2012, Chelsea announced a profit of £1.4 million for the year ending 30 June 2012, the first time the club had made a profit under Abramovich's ownership. This
16588-450: The urging of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky , because of the oligarch's potential role in negotiations with Russia. The Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Abramovich took part in the negotiations "at the initial stage". No further details of the nature of Abramovich's involvement in the process were disclosed by either party to the conflict. In December 2022, Canada announced that it would target him for
16731-400: The use of different colours, including red from 1987 to 1995, and yellow from 1995 until 1999, before the white returned. With the new ownership of Roman Abramovich , and the club's centenary approaching, combined with demands from fans for the popular 1950s badge to be restored, it was decided that the crest should be changed again in 2005. The new crest was officially adopted for the start of
16874-420: The vegetable was banned inside Stamford Bridge after an incident involving midfielder Cesc Fàbregas at the 2007 League Cup final . Popular fan chants include, "Super Chelsea", "Super Frank" (dedicated to all-time leading goal scorer Frank Lampard ), "We love you Chelsea" and "Come on Chelsea". There are situation-specific or team-specific chants meant to rile up opposition teams, managers or players. Chelsea
17017-431: The whole, reliable witness". In 2011, a transcript emerged of a taped conversation that took place between Abramovich and Berezovsky at Le Bourget airport in December 2000. Badri Patarkatsishvili , a close acquaintance of Berezovsky, was also present and secretly had the conversation recorded. During the discussion, Berezovsky spoke of how they should "legalise" their aluminium business, and later claimed in court that he
17160-650: The worst football kits ever. The song " Blue is the Colour " was released as a single in the build-up to the 1972 League Cup final , with all members of Chelsea's first team squad singing; it reached number five in the UK Singles Chart . The song has since been adopted by a number of other sports teams around the world, including the Vancouver Whitecaps (as "White is the Colour") and the Saskatchewan Roughriders (as "Green
17303-410: The years to come. UEFA responded to the precarious profit/loss landscape of clubs, some owned by billionaires, but others simply financial juggernauts like Real Madrid, with Financial Fair Play regulations. Chelsea finished their first season after the takeover in second place in the Premier League , up from fourth the previous year. They also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League , which
17446-592: The £1.5 billion the club owed him, and put the club up for sale, pledging to donate net proceeds from it to the victims of the war in Ukraine. On 10 March 2022, the British government announced sanctions on Abramovich with Chelsea allowed to operate under a special license until 31 May. In the following weeks, reports emerged of Abramovich's involvement in brokering a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia and securing safe evacuation corridors in besieged Ukrainian cities. An American government official revealed that
17589-564: Was accelerated on the back of widespread U.S. industrialization and World War 1. In 1917 commodity prices peaked and then entered a downtrend to the 1930s. As war erupted in Europe in the late 1930s and eventually including the U.S. the world saw a new cycle begin. Countries were not just preparing for war but also the Aftermath of World War II as lots of Europe and Asia faced heavy rebuilding. This cycle eventually peaked in 1951 and faded away in
17732-546: Was added, the North Stand, which remained until its demolition in 1975. In the early 1970s, the club's owners announced a modernisation of Stamford Bridge with plans for a state-of-the-art 50,000 all-seater stadium. Work began in 1972 but the project was beset with problems and ultimately only the East Stand was completed; the cost brought the club close to bankruptcy. The freehold was sold to property developers and
17875-427: Was an undisclosed shareholder in the aluminium assets and that "legalisation" in this case meant to make his ownership "official". In response, Abramovich states in the transcript that they cannot legalise because the other party in the 50–50 joint venture ( Rusal ) would need to do the same, in a supposed reference to his business partner Oleg Deripaska . Besides Deripaska, references are made to several other players in
18018-618: Was appointed manager in 1952 and proceeded to modernise the club. He removed the club's Chelsea pensioner crest, improved the youth set-up and training regime, rebuilt the side with shrewd signings from the lower divisions and amateur leagues, and led Chelsea to their first major trophy success – the League championship – in 1954–55 . The following season saw UEFA create the European Champions' Cup , but after objections from The Football League , Chelsea were persuaded to withdraw from
18161-416: Was assisted by Badri Patarkatsishvili in the acquisition of Sibneft. After Sibneft, Abramovich's next target was the aluminium industry. After privatisation, the "aluminium wars" led to murders of smelting plant managers, metals traders and journalists as groups battled for control of the industry. Abramovich was initially hesitant to enter into the aluminium business, claiming that "every three days someone
18304-519: Was cleared by UEFA of having a conflict of interest. Nevertheless, he was named "most influential person in Russian football" in the Russian magazine Pro Sport at the end of June 2004. In May 2005, CSKA won the UEFA Cup , becoming the first Russian club ever to win a major European football competition. In October 2005, however, Abramovich sold his interest in Sibneft and the company's new owner Gazprom , which sponsors Zenit Saint Petersburg , cancelled
18447-540: Was dismissed in January 2021 and replaced with Thomas Tuchel . Under Tuchel, Chelsea reached the FA Cup final , losing 1–0 to Leicester City , and won their second UEFA Champions League title with a 1–0 win over Manchester City in Porto. The club subsequently won the 2021 UEFA Super Cup for the second time by defeating Villarreal 6–5 in a penalty shootout, after it had ended 1–1 in Belfast after extra time, and
18590-661: Was eventually won by the surprise contender Porto , managed by José Mourinho . For Abramovich's second season at Stamford Bridge , Mourinho was recruited as the new manager, replacing the incumbent Claudio Ranieri . Chelsea ended the 2004–05 season as league champions for the first time in 50 years and only the second time in their history. Also high were Abramovich's spending regarding purchases of Portuguese football players. According to record newspaper accounts, he spent 165.1 million euros in Portugal: 90.9 with Benfica players and 74.2 with Porto players. During his stewardship of
18733-452: Was first worn during the 1964–65 season. Since then Chelsea have always worn white socks with their home kit apart from a short spell from 1985 to 1992, when blue socks were reintroduced. Chelsea's away colours are usually all yellow or all white with blue trim. More recently, the club have had a number of black or dark blue away kits which alternate every year. As with most teams, they have had some more unusual ones. At Docherty's behest, in
18876-439: Was followed by a loss in 2013 and then their highest ever profit of £18.4 million for the year to June 2014. In 2018 Chelsea announced a record after-tax profit of £62 million. In 2017, under new coach Antonio Conte , Chelsea won their sixth English title and the following season won their eighth FA Cup. In 2018 Conte was sacked after a fifth-place finish and replaced with Maurizio Sarri , under whom Chelsea reached
19019-609: Was formerly Governor of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug from 2000 to 2008. According to Forbes , Abramovich's net worth was US$ 14.5 billion in 2021. making him the second-richest person in Israel , Since then, his wealth decreased to $ 6.9 billion (in 2022), and recovered up to $ 9.2 billion in 2023. Abramovich enriched himself in the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, obtaining Russian state-owned assets at prices far below market value in Russia's controversial loans-for-shares privatisation program. Abramovich
19162-583: Was murdered in that business". Abramovich sold Sibneft to the Russian government for $ 13 billion in 2005. In 2011, Abramovich's longtime business partner filed a civil suit, Berezovsky v Abramovich , in the High Court of Justice in London. He accused Abramovich of blackmail, breach of trust and breach of contract. The suit sought over £3 billion in damages. On 31 August 2012, the High Court dismissed
19305-617: Was put in place. The British government said the sanctions were in response to Abramovich's alleged ties to the Kremlin and said the companies Abramovich controls could be producing steel used in tanks deployed offensively by Russia in Ukraine. Abramovich denies that he has close ties to Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin . Also on 10 March Canada imposed sanctions against Abramovich as a businessman helping President Vladimir Putin in his war against Ukraine. On 14 March, Australia and on 15 March,
19448-554: Was replaced by José Mourinho . Under Mourinho, Chelsea became the fifth English team to win back-to-back league championships since the Second World War ( 2004–05 and 2005–06 ), in addition to winning an FA Cup ( 2007 ) and two League Cups ( 2005 and 2007 ). After a poor start to the 2007–08 season, Mourinho was replaced by Avram Grant , who led the club to their first UEFA Champions League final , which they lost on penalties to Manchester United . The club did not turn
19591-442: Was set to invest hundreds of millions of pounds for the construction of the stadium. Abramovich has been accused of purchasing Chelsea at the behest of Vladimir Putin, but he has denied the claim. Putin's People , a book by journalist Catherine Belton , a former Financial Times Moscow correspondent, formerly made such an assertion, but after libel action by Abramovich against Belton and the book's British publisher HarperCollins ,
19734-569: Was that these facilities would provide extra revenue to support the football side of the business, but they were less successful than hoped and before the Abramovich takeover in 2003 the debt taken on to finance them was a major burden on the club. Soon after the takeover a decision was taken to drop the "Chelsea Village" brand and refocus on Chelsea as a football club. However, the stadium is sometimes still referred to as part of "Chelsea Village" or "The Village" . The Stamford Bridge freehold ,
19877-530: Was the first Chelsea crest to appear on the shirts, in the early 1960s. In 1975, a heraldic badge was granted by the College of Arms to the English Football League for use by Chelsea. The badge took the form of the familiar lion and staff encircled by a blue ring but without lettering and without the red roses and red footballs ( blazoned as " A lion rampant reguardant azure supporting with
20020-473: Was the venue for a boxing match between world flyweight champion Jimmy Wilde and Joe Conn in 1918. The running track was used for dirt track racing between 1928 and 1932, greyhound racing from 1933 to 1968, and Midget car racing in 1948. In 1980, Stamford Bridge hosted the first international floodlit cricket match in the UK, between Essex and the West Indies . It was the home stadium of
20163-541: Was to plague the club throughout the decade. In 1982, at the nadir of their fortunes, Chelsea were acquired by Ken Bates from Mears' great-nephew Brian Mears , for the nominal sum of £1. Bates bought a controlling stake in the club and floated Chelsea on the AIM stock exchange in March 1996 although by now the Stamford Bridge freehold had been sold to property developers, meaning the club faced losing their home. On
20306-422: Was turned down, so Mears opted to found his own club to use the stadium. As there was already a team named Fulham in the borough, the name of the adjacent borough of Chelsea was chosen for the new club; names like Kensington FC , Stamford Bridge FC and London FC were considered. Chelsea F.C. was founded on 10 March 1905 at The Rising Sun pub (now The Butcher's Hook), opposite the present-day main entrance to
20449-402: Was worn with white shorts and dark blue or black socks. The light blue shirts were replaced by a royal blue version in around 1912. In the 1960s Chelsea manager Tommy Docherty changed the kit again, switching to blue shorts (which have remained ever since) and white socks, believing it made the club's colours more modern and distinctive, since no other major side used that combination; this kit
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