English side Chelsea are re-evaluating their sponsorship deal with betting organization Parimatch Tech who are set to be punished by the Ukrainian government.
Parimatch and Sportradar AG, which the owner of Chelsea has shares in, will be prohibited from any economic or financial activity in Ukraine for the next 50 years.
This punishment would be meted out by Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky. Unfortunately, Todd Boehly splashed out £120 million on the company’s shares 18 months ago.
The betting company, Parimatch, has a running three-year sponsorship contract with Chelsea which would see the logo of the organization shown on LED systems around Stamford Bridge.
Parimatch is included in a list of 280 companies on a punishment list put out last Friday.
Parimatch and Sportradar AG are being targeted for furthering businesses in Russia a year after the country invades Ukraine.
Volodymyr Zelensky claims that Parimatch’s continuous conduct of business in Russia has helped the regime of Vladimir Putin to finance his invasion of Ukraine.
Zelensky stated: “There are more than 280 companies and 120 people who, through gambling business schemes, worked against Ukraine, withdrew funds from our state and financed various Russian schemes.
“It took some time to prepare the decision. It has been thoroughly worked out and closes schemes worth tens of billions.”
Chelsea are cross-checking their contractual agreements with Parimatch, who also have commercial contracts with Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Leicester City.
Information from sources close to the owner of Chelsea have stated that Todd Boehly’s stake in Sportradar is not huge.
Boehly was interested in a £10 billion buyout of the company through acquisition organization, Horizon Acquisition, in 2021.
UEFA could also evaluate their contract with Sportradar, who are the official betting partner for the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and 2024 European Championship.
The previous owner of Chelsea, Roman Abramovic set the club up for a sale due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.
Abramovic was punished by the government of the UK and the profits of his sale of Chelsea went to helping the Ukrainian casualties of the war.
Chelsea announced the partnership with Parimatch on the 21st of August in 2021 during the time their former owner was still at the helms of affair of the side.
The new sanctions put out by Volodymyr Zelensky ropes 120 Russians and 287 legal entities, which are mostly in the gambling sector.
Contrary to other top multinational betting organizations such as DraftKings and Caesars, Sportradar did not discontinue its businesses in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine one year ago.
However, they did suspend any fresh investments in the European nation.
Furthermore, the Chief Executive Officer of Sportradar, Carsten Koerl, has shares in an organization that owns a Russian sporting betting company. However, Carsten Koerl does not have any operational duty with the firm.
