Saudi investor, owner of Medina Spirit, bids for Chelsea

LONDON (AP) — The owner of Medina Spirit, a horse that won the Kentucky Derby but was disqualified, is among the candidates to acquire Chelsea, an English Premier League club, as part of the accelerated search for a new owner, a person aware of the procedure said on Tuesday.

Amr Zedan, a Saudi investor who was born in Los Angeles, registered his bid with the Raine Group — the bank that controls the sale of the European champion, the person told The Associated Press, who asked for anonymity because he is not authorized to speak publicly about the tender.

The investor is director of the Zedan Group, which is involved in the energy and petrochemical sector in Saudi Arabia and involves Zedan Racing Stables.

Roman Abramovich was forced to sell Chelsea after the British government sanctioned the oligarch because of his closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Zedan joins a list of at least six public bidders. The sale could reach £3 billion ($4 billion) and Zedan is working to raise more financing.

The millionaire has not been linked to the Medina Spirit doping scandal, which tested positive after the Kentucky Derby held in May.

The British government has to approve a licence for the acquisition, from which Abramovich cannot receive any profit.

A consortium that has bid includes Todd Boehly, owner of part of the Dodgers; Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wuss, and Jonathan Goldstein, a property investor in London. Its supply would exceed £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion).

Michael Broughton, former president of Liverpool and British Airways, leads a group that includes Sebastian Coe, president of World Athletics and who is a Chelsea fan.

The Ricketts family, who own the Chicago Cubs, joined investment fund manager Ken Griffin. Joe Ricketts made his fortune as president of the e-commerce platform TD Ameritrade. His son Tom is president of the Cubs.

British property magnate Nick Candy revealed on Monday that he “significantly” increased the initial offer of £2 billion ($2.6 billion). The group known as “The Blue Football Consortium” proposes investment from South Korean companies such as Hana Financial Group, C&P Sports Group and an undisclosed third party.

London investment firm Centricus, which claims to control $38 billion in assets, also submitted an offer.