Roman Abramovich has rejected a massive offer to buy Chelsea from US financier Todd Boehly as it fell short of his £3billion valuation.
Boehly, who owns 20 percent of Major League Baseball team LA Dodgers, is the latest interested party in the Premier League club.
According to the Financial Times, he had a bid rejected by Abramovich, though the specific price is unknown.
Boehly has made his fortune as the founder of Eldridge Industries after leaving Guggenheim Partners with huge investments in media, sport, and property. Eldridge employs more than 2,500 across their business.
He was educated at the London School of Economics and Eldridge is said to be worth £4.72bn.
Boehly also part-owns Women’s National Basketball Association side Los Angeles Sparks and has shares in professional esports organisation Cloud9.
The American may test the water with a follow-up bid, as Abramovich’s future with the club he bought in 2003 is uncertain. He has also previously been linked with a move for Tottenham but he appears to have prioritised rivals, Chelsea, over the north London outfit.
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A number of prospective buyers were understood to have approached the Russian last year after he took Israeli citizenship with rising tensions between his homeland and the UK meaning his investor visa application was delayed. He had been planning on building a new state-of-the-art £500m stadium to replace Stamford Bridge but that has now been shelved.