Owners of the Chicago Cubs, who are bidding for Premier League club Chelsea, touted their anti-racism credentials on Wednesday after a backlash in England over offensive comments from the Ricketts family patriarch.
It’s been three years since Joe Ricketts apologized after online outlet Splinter News published emails featuring him making Islamophobic comments, such as “Islam is a cult not a religion”. competition to buy Chelsea, which went up for sale after Russian owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the British government for his links to President Vladimir Putin amid the war on Ukraine.
Paul Canoville, Chelsea’s first black player, tweeted ‘a big anti-racism NO to the Ricketts offer’. his son, Cubs president Tom Ricketts. They also partnered hedge fund manager Ken Griffin for the offering.
“Our family rejects all forms of hate in the strongest terms possible,” the Ricketts family said in a statement. ”Racism and Islamophobia have no place in our society.
“We have developed deep and lasting partnerships with the Muslim community in Chicago, as well as with all communities of color.” Tom Ricketts was due to travel to London this week to discuss the candidacy with fans.
“Respect for diversity and inclusion are core to our family values,” the family statement said. “If we are successful in our bid for Chelsea, we are committing to the club and the fans to actively promote these values.” There are at least seven known bidders for Chelsea and the UK government must approve a license for the redemption which cannot see Abramovich receive the sale proceeds.
The sale price could reach 3 billion pounds (4 billion dollars).
A consortium that has bid includes Todd Boehly, co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and Jonathan Goldstein, a London-based property investor and CEO of Cain International.
Michael Broughton, the former chairman of Liverpool and British Airways, is leading a consortium that includes top tracker Sebastian Coe, chairman of World Athletics, IOC member and Chelsea fan.
British property tycoon Nick Candy is behind the “Blue Football Consortium” which offers investments from South Korean companies including Hana Financial Group, C&P Sports Group and an undisclosed third entity.
London-based global investment firm Centricus, which says it oversees $38 billion in assets, has also submitted an offer.
Amr Zedan, a Los Angeles-born Saudi investor, has also registered his offer with the Raine Group, the bank overseeing the sale of the reigning European and world champions.
(This story has not been edited by the Devdiscourse team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)