Chicago Cubs ownership looking to purchase Chelsea FC after crying poor
To hear Chicago Cubs ownership tell it, owning a major league team is a losing proposition. Back in 2020, Tom Ricketts claimed that team owners did not make much money as revenue was put back into the franchise. While that may have been true during the pandemic shortened 2020 season, his claim that the “scale of losses around the league are biblical” was seen as laughable at the time.
That is not stopping the Ricketts family from exploring other opportunities in other professional leagues. According to reports, they are considering making an offer for the Chelsea Football Club, which is being sold by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.
Chicago Cubs owners not as poor as they claim
Abramovich has a specific amount in mind as well. His advisors are seeking bids of at least three billion pounds ($4 billion) for the club. This clearly is not going to be a minor investment for whoever purchases the team.
Ricketts himself is not hurting for money. He is estimated to be worth $2 billion, with the Ricketts family as a whole worth $4.5 billion. In fact, only seven owners are worth more than the Ricketts family. If owning a team is such a horrendous investment as has been claimed during the lockout, it makes one wonder why so many billionaires are rushing to do so.
That extends to other sports as well. The possibility that the Ricketts could purchase Chelsea, or at least make what could be a competitive offer, would seem to derail the argument that owning a team is a losing proposition. Unless, of course, the Bible states Thou Shalt Covet Thy Neighbor’s Soccer Team.
This possibility is also all the more frustrating given the ongoing lockout. The owners are not only trying to break the union, but by canceling games and shutting the league down, they are hurting the fans. Their claims that they cannot afford to do business, or that one of two teams will outspend everyone by drastic amounts without a salary cap, are harder to believe when one of those owners may spend $4 billion to purchase another team in a different sport.
Chicago Cubs ownership is reportedly considering making an offer for the Chelsea Football Club. So much for their cries of poverty.