Roman Abramovich has owned Chelsea since '03. GETTY IMAGES
As relations between Britain and Russia "strain and crack" in the aftermath of the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter on March 4, it would be difficult to "punish Russia's ruling class by separating its oligarchs from their property," according to Rory Smith of the N.Y. TIMES. U.K. PM Theresa May and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson raised the "possibility of striking back" at Russian President Vladimir Putin by "targeting the assets of oligarchs living in London." Any move against the oligarchs "would not simply be a case of seizing the Belgravia townhouses or freezing the bank accounts of a cadre of unfamiliar names." It "would not be neat, or quiet." Chelsea Owner Roman Abramovich is "not the only link" between English football and Russia. Across London, another oligarch, Alisher Usmanov, owns 30% of Arsenal. His longtime business partner, Farhad Moshiri, is the "largest shareholder at Everton." A third Premier League team, Bournemouth, has been "bankrolled" by a Russian benefactor: Maxim Demin, a former trader and petrochemical magnate, bought the club in '11 and has "since transformed it into a Premier League mainstay." ManU, meanwhile, announced in '13 a five-year deal that made Aeroflot, the Russian state airline, its official carrier. A year earlier, Chelsea unveiled Gazprom, Russia's energy "monolith," as its official energy partner. Gazprom is "also one of the principal sponsors of the Champions League."
Russian President Vladimir Putin with Arsenal co-Owner Alisher Usmanov.GETTY IMAGES
'SOFT POWER': Manchester Metropolitan University sport management & policy lecturer Paul Brannagan said that the rationale behind all of those deals is Russia's "desire to gain what is known as 'soft power' in the West." He said, "Russia is doing what Qatar has done." When Abramovich landed at Chelsea, he insisted he was "bored" and "simply looking for a new challenge." Beneath the surface, though, it was "always assumed Abramovich's motivation was security." He retained a "close" relationship with Putin and the Kremlin, but he also had seen, since Putin rose to power in '00, what had "happened to those who fell out of favor." The "one doubt that lingers" is how permanent all of it is. Alexei Navalny, the "most prominent opposition figure in Moscow," named Abramovich and Usmanov as "prime targets" if May follows through on threats to "strip Russian tycoons of their assets." Russian opposition figure Vladimir Ashurkov, who lives in London, said, "Britain has some of the most advanced laws in the world already in place." He added that what has always been lacking is "the political will to use them" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/18).
