Chelsea changes include Boehly as interim sporting director

The changes announced include the departure of Marina Granovskaia, who was previously a director and played a key role in buying and selling players for Chelsea in the transfer market, but not until the end of the current transfer window.

London:Todd Boehly, who fronted the recent world-record purchase of Chelsea, will assume the roles of chairman and interim sporting director following leadership changes at the Premier League club. The changes announced Wednesday include the departure of Marina Granovskaia, who was previously a director and played a key role in buying and selling players for Chelsea in the transfer market, but not until the end of the current transfer window.

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Chelsea said Granovskaia will remain available to Boehly and the club for the duration of the current transfer window, to the extent required to support the transition. The west London club was sold last month for 2.5 billion pounds ($3.1 billion) the highest price paid for a sports team to a consortium fronted by Boehly, part-owner of Los Angeles Dodgers. That price tag is expected to be eclipsed by the impending sale of the NFL's Denver Broncos.

The Chelsea sale marked the end of the trophy-filled, 19-year tenure of Roman Abramovich, the Russian oligarch who was forced to put the club on the market in March after being sanctioned by the British government for what it called his enabling of Russian President Vladimir Putin's brutal and barbaric invasion of Ukraine.

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Bruce Buck, who served as chairman under Abramovich, is stepping down at the end of June. Granovskaia was another trusted and increasingly key member of the board under Abramovich. In announcing the make-up of the club's new board, Boehly said it marks the start of executing our long-term vision and plan for the club, creating an outstanding experience for its passionate, loyal fans, and continuing to challenge for top honors in line with Chelsea's decorated history.

AP