Roman Abramovich's Chelsea Loan Surpasses £1B For First Time

The latest accounts for Fordstam, the company through which Roman Abramovich owns Chelsea, indicate that his interest-free loan to the club has exceeded £1B ($1.58B) for the first time, according to Sam Wallace of the London INDEPENDENT. The loan now totals £1,041,243,000, which is, according to Fordstam's accounts up to June last year, repayable at 18 months' notice. That amount was up from £984M from the accounts of the previous year. There is "no suggestion that Abramovich, who has owned the club for almost 12 years, is seeking repayment of his loan within the near future." In the Fordstam accounts, the club values its total playing staff at £353M ($557M), a dramatic increase from the £272.2M the previous year. The accounts also include £13.7M ($21.6M) of investment on facilities at Stamford Bridge and Cobham (INDEPENDENT, 5/13).