The government is set to approve Chelsea's £4.25bn sale in the next 24 hours, BBC Sport has learned.
However, the deal "still has major hurdles to overcome" according to a senior Whitehall insider.
It is understood that, because owner Roman Abramovich has a Portuguese passport, the takeover needs to be licensed by authorities in that country too.
Ministers are now said to be in "intense discussions" with their counterparts at the European Commission to provide them the assurances they need to approve the deal.
Chelsea have agreed terms on a deal with a private-equity funded consortium led by US investor Todd Boehly, co-owner of the LA Dodgers baseball team.