Abramovich pushes to sell Chelsea as lawmakers target owner.

As Russia's war on Ukraine entered a seventh day, the British government was yet to say if Abramovich would be included among the wealthy Russians to be targeted in sanctions. Alisher Usmanov

A Russian metals tycoon who is a major sponsor of Everton, has already been sanctioned by the European Union. The Premier League club on Wednesday suspended sponsorships with Usmanov's firms, including USM which has the naming rights to the training ground and paid 30 million pounds ($40 million) for the same rights to a new stadium being built in Liverpool.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was not "appropriate" to comment on individual cases when asked in the House of Commons why Abramovich was not facing sanctions yet. “We must stand up to Putin and those who prop up his regime," Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour Party, said to Johnson. “Roman Abramovich is the owner of Chelsea Football Club and various other high-value assets in the United Kingdom.

He’s a person of interest to the Home Office because of his links to the Russian state and his public association with corrupt activity and practices.” Chelsea owes Abramovich more than 1.5 billion pounds ($2 billion) in loans after 19 years of injecting cash to elevate the club into one of the most successful in Europe. The Blues won the Club World Cup for the first time last month — in front of Abramovich in Abu Dhabi — after securing a second Champions League title last year.

Wyss said he would only be interested in joining a “consortium consisting of six to seven investors” to buy Chelsea. The club has the smallest and most dated stadium of the Premier League's most successful clubs, with plans for a rebuild of the 41,000-capacity venue put on hold by Abramovich in 2018 as British-Russian diplomatic tensions deepened.

The need for upgrades at Stamford Bridge, the debt and the potential need for a rapid sale could hamper Abramovich receiving the asking price — as could any government intervention. Parliamentary privilege had been used by Labour Party legislator Chris Bryant to claim in the House of Commons on Tuesday that Abramovich was already looking to sell London properties, speculating that “he’s terrified of being sanctioned.” Bryant added:

“The danger is that Mr. Abramovich will have sold everything by the time we get round to sanctioning him.” Abramovich tried to distance himself from decision-making at Chelsea for the first time on Saturday by announcing plans to shift the “stewardship and care” of the club its foundation trustees. But the Charity Commission, which regulates the Chelsea Foundation, has received a “serious incident report” from the Foundation's trustees amid concerns about how Abramovich’s plan can be enacted.