Sir Jim Ratcliffe launches eleventh hour bid to buy Chelsea FC

It’s better late than never. The Raine Group conducted an extensive worldwide search for Chelsea Football Club’s new owner beginning immediately after Roman Abramovich announced his intentions to sell the club after 19 years. The New York-based company talked to thousands of interested candidates and parties throughout the process as they looked for the right individual(s) to guide the Blues into this new era. Although there were some shocking bids submitted, perhaps the biggest surprise was the lack of interest shown by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Ratcliffe didn’t submit an official bid to The Raine Group by the deadline, for one reason or another, despite flirting with the idea of buying the team from Abramovich throughout the last few years. Thus, those in charge went ahead with their business and narrowed the shortlist down to four names. The Ricketts family has since pulled out of the race, leaving just three contenders: the Todd Boehly consortium, Stephen Pagliuca and Sir Martin Broughton’s group. However, Ratcliffe made a stunning eleventh hour bid to The Raine Group on Friday morning as he officially joined the race to buy Chelsea.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has officially launched a bid to buy Chelsea FC on Friday

Let’s get one thing straight: the only reason Ratcliffe is even able to submit a bid this late is because he’s now presumably become the highest bidder with his initial offer. The club has been rumored to be selling for anywhere from £3 to 3.5 billion over the next few weeks, which is why Ratcliffe swooped in with an offer of £4.25 billion. Rounding up the funds for all of the other consortiums has taken some time and effort, but all Ratcliffe has to do is open up his checkbook.

Simply put, the Chelsea season ticket holder is one of the richest men on the planet. The British billionaire currently has a net worth of over £12.1 billion and rising. He sits 124th on Forbes’ Real Time Billionaires list, which is 126 spots ahead of Abramovich (250) and a few hundred spots above both Todd Boehly (630) and Hansjorg Wyss (527). For those wondering, neither Pagliuca nor Broughton are even given rankings.

Ratcliffe is described by his Wikipedia page as a “chemical engineer turned financier and industrialist.” He is currently the Chairman and CEO of Ineos Chemicals Group, which he founded over two decades ago. Ratcliffe is not very well-known to the media due to his introverted personality, but his business is notable. He’s long been one of—and the, at times—richest men in Britain as his company only continues to grow in value.

There’s no telling why he waited this long to include himself in the proceedings, and there’s still the question of whether or not he’ll even be taken seriously. The Raine Group has spent months vetting each of the candidates and taking two steps back now to pause the process for Ratcliffe seems unwise.

Nevertheless, the 69-year-old must be taken seriously due to the financial might of his offer. Chelsea will be sold in the next few weeks and although The Raine Group seemed set to decide on a winner, Ratcliffe’s bid further complicates the process. If you thought there weren’t any twists remaining in this unprecedented plot, you’d be sadly mistaken. Some surprises could still be waiting around the corner.

Do you think Ratcliffe has a chance to become the new owner? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on Twitter!