Chicago Cubs owner Thomas Ricketts and billionaire hedge fund tycoon Ken Griffin form rival consortium to buy Chelsea
CHICAGO CUBS owner Thomas Ricketts is part of a consortium that has thrown its hat into the ring to buy Chelsea.
The Ricketts family, who own the Illinois-based baseball team, have linked up with billionaire hedge fund tycoon Ken Griffin to put together an investment group which will aim to take over from Roman Abramovich.
An official announcement about the bid is set to be released later today.
On Wednesday, a spokesman for the consortium told : "The Ricketts Family, owners of the Chicago Cubs, can confirm they will be leading an investment group that will make a formal bid for Chelsea Football Club this Friday.
"As long-time operators of an iconic professional sports team, the Ricketts Family and their partners understand the importance of investing for success on the pitch, while respecting the traditions of the club, the fans and the community.
"We look forward to sharing further details of our plans in due course."
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The move comes after it was reported that boyhood Chelsea fan Nick Candy is exploring the possibility of forming a super consortium to take over the club.
could join forces with fellow interested parties Todd Boehly, Jonathan Goldstein and Hansjorg Wyss - with a combined net worth of more than £9.3BILLION.
Former Liverpool and British Airways chairman Sir Martin Broughton, who's also a Chelsea fan, has been spoken to as well.
The businessman has promised Chelsea fans a seat on its board if he is successful in his attempts to buy the west London side.
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The European champions were put up for sale just before Russian owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government.
Abramovich had his assets frozen, which has heavily affected Chelsea.
The Blues are unable to sell home or away match tickets, as well as club merchandise.
Players cannot be bought, sold or have their contracts renewed - meaning they could lose Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Cesar Azpilicueta at the end of the season.