Soccer-South Korean companies join forces with Candy in bid for Chelsea

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MANCHESTER — South Korea companies Hana Financial Investment Company Limited and C&P Sports Limited have joined forces with British Property developer Nick Candy to make a bid for Chelsea, a statement from Candy said on Friday.

Premier League Chelsea were initially put up for sale by owner Roman Abramovich following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine before sanctions were imposed on the oligarch by the British government, effectively giving it control of the club.

Raine Group, a U.S. bank, has been overseeing the sale process since before the Russian billionaire was sanctioned, and have set a 2100 GMT deadline on Friday for offers to be submitted, with the Candy consortium planning a bid.

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“I can confirm that the two South Korean firms Hana Financial Investment Company and C&P Sports Group are a significant part of Mr Candy’s global consortium of investors,” a statement from The Blue Football consortium, Candy’s bid vehicle, told Reuters.

“Their involvement is representative of Chelsea’s global brand and huge loyal fan base in Asia.”

C&P Sports CEO Catalina Kim had earlier confirmed to Reuters that they and Hana were considering a bid.

“We are in the process of arranging our bid for Chelsea FC,” a statement read. “Surprisingly enough, despite the size of the economy, there has never been investment into (English) Premier League football clubs made by South Korean capital so far.

“Now it is time for a change and we are ready to start the new chapter with Chelsea FC.”

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The owners of U.S. baseball team the Chicago Cubs, the Ricketts family, confirmed to Reuters that they had tabled a bid for Chelsea, in conjunction with Citadel founder Ken Griffin.

Turkish businessman Muhsin Bayrak, who had previously expressed interest in the club, said late on Friday that his company AB Group Holding had not filed a bid to Raine Bank.

Bayrak blamed AB Group’s failure to meet the deadline due to a misunderstanding with his lawyers over the auction procedure. “I am very upset,” he told Reuters.

According to emails seen by Reuters, AB Group’s lawyers contacted the UK Department for Digital, Culture Media & Sport using a generic email address to file an enquiry, rather than to file a bid to the U.S. investment bank.

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COMMERCIAL DEALS

Hana Financial Investment Company Limited is a member of Korean banking giant Hana Financial Group – a South Korean investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Seoul, Korea.

Hana Financial Group is the title sponsor of the Korean Football League and the national soccer team.

C&P Sports Limited is a leading sports consultancy company based in London and Seoul.

C&P Sports has worked on commercial deals with several big clubs in the last 10 years, such as Kumhos Tyres with Tottenham Hotspur, Nexen Tyre with Manchester City and Hyundai Motors with Atletico Madrid.

Candy, a lifelong Chelsea fan, has been joined by former Blues player and manager Gianluca Vialli as he prepares his bid.

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“I have met Nick Candy on a number of occasions over the last few weeks and I am fully behind his visions,” Italian Vialli said in a statement after it was announced the company he co-founded, Tifosy, will act as lead advisor for the process.

Numerous other companies and business people planning to make a bid before the deadline passes.

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has joined a consortium including former Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton.

Swiss billionaire Hansjoerg Wyss, who has linked up with LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly to express an interest, has been joined by British businessman Jonathan Goldstein and Conservative peer Daniel Finkelstein.

(Reporting by Peter Hall; additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen and David Gauthier-Villars; Editing by Christian Radnedge and Ken Ferris)