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Sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine are being tested in the UK. The Russian owner of the Chelsea Football Club, Roman Abramovich, a Putin-linked financier placed the team in a trust to avoid them.

There was increasing pressure on Prime Minister Boris Johnson from leading parliamentary officials. And the calls for him to seize or freeze Abramovich's UK assets were growing.

It was confirmed earlier this week that prohibitive measures would be put in place to target Vladimir Putin's 'inner circle'.  However, Abramovich hadn’t yet been sanctioned despite the promise that Russian banks and businesses would have their assets frozen.

Politicians were calling on Johnson to take Chelsea to enforce sanctions targeting rich Russians operating in the UK.

The billionaire, one of Russia's highest-profile oligarchs, holds both Israeli and Russian citizenship. And his biggest investment in the UK is 2 billion in the Chelsea Football League.

As a preemptive measure, Abramovich put the club in a trust.

 “I have always taken decisions with the club’s best interest at heart,” Abramovich said. “I remain committed to these values. That is why I am today giving trustees of Chelsea’s charitable foundation the stewardship and care of Chelsea FC.” 

“I believe that currently, they are in the best position to look after the interests of the club, players, staff, and fans,” he added.

The foundation is chaired by Bruce Buck. And he is also chairman of the club who became a director when Abramovich got the team. Chelsea's director of finance Paul Ramos is also a trustee. And Emma Hayes, who manages the women's team is a trustee, as well.

UPDATE: On Monday Abramovich was present at the Russia-Ukraine peace summit. He attended at the request of Ukraine President Zelensky. Abramovich has close ties to the Jewish communities in Russia and Ukraine. And so does Zelensky.

On Saturday, the 27-year-old daughter of Roman Abramovich shared her views with her 41,000 Instagram followers. Sofia Abramovich posted a message which read: "The biggest and most successful lie of the Kremlin's propaganda is that most Russians stand with Putin". Sofia spends much of her time in London and has been seen with her billionaire dad around the Chelsea facility at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea Football Club avoids sanctions

 Chelsea FC, part of the UK’s celebrated Premier soccer League is known as the “Pride of London.” Both men's and women’s teams operate from the historic Stamford Bridge location. And a Stadium is part of the package. 

The billionaire has owned the club since 2003 through his private company, Fordstam. Mega-wealthy Abramovich has invested more than $2 billion in the form of loans.

He oversaw the transformation of the west London team into one of the most successful in English leagues.  Earlier this month, Chelsea added the Club World Cup title to the Champions League trophy they won last year.

Players at Chelsea are preparing to face Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.