As the exact details of the U.K.’s sanctions package against Russia continue to be worked out, the ramifications are beginning to be felt through football, with Everton severing ties with Alisher Usmanov and Roman Abramovich apparently looking to sell Chelsea.
Usmanov, an Uzbek-born Russian metals tycoon, has had his assets frozen by the European Union, although no sanction has yet been imposed by the U.K., and he insists claims he is linked to Vladimir Putin are “false and defamatory.” He is a close business associate of Everton owner Farhad Moshiri, and, although he does not own any share in the club, he is involved in a number of sponsorship deals.