This just in from Chelsea:

Chelsea Football Club has been advised that its owner Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK Government.

By virtue of his 100 per cent ownership of Chelsea FC plc and affiliated entities, Chelsea FC would normally be subject to the same sanctions regime as Mr Abramovich. However, the UK Government has issued a general licence that permits Chelsea FC to continue certain activities. We will fulfil our men’s and women’s team fixtures today against Norwich and West Ham, respectively, and intend to engage in discussions with the UK Government regarding the scope of the licence.

This will include seeking permission for the licence to be amended in order to allow the club to operate as normal as possible. We will also be seeking guidance from the UK Government on the impact of these measures on the Chelsea Foundation and its important work in our communities. The club will update further when it is appropriate.

Image source, Getty Images

We have yet to hear from the club itself, but a Chelsea statement is imminent.

Following the UK Government’s announcement that sanctions have been imposed against Roman Abramovich, the Premier League can confirm tonight’s match between Norwich City FC and Chelsea FC will go ahead as planned.

The Government has issued an initial licence to enable Chelsea FC to continue to train, play its fixtures and fulfill its obligations for the rest of the season.

The League will now work with the club and the Government to ensure the season will proceed as planned and in line with the Government’s intention.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Oliver Bullough, Journalist and author of 'Butler to the World' has been speaking on Abramovich on BBC Radio 5 Live: "When you've got a huge amount of money it's fun to buy expensive toys, and there's few more expensive than a football club.

"It gave him a reputation in this country that no other Oligarchs could match. I think that's been crucial for him for managing his reputation

"Stamford Bridge was a clubhouse to him, for him to show off

"If you think about what Abramovich has, the value of what has been frozen today, he is going to fight very hard to retain that."

This is how the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office publicised on social media details of sanctions against Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and six other oligarchs.

Image source, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

BBC Radio 5 Live

Culture secretary Nadine Dorries has been speaking to BBC Radio 5 live about the sanctions on Roman Abramovich and the impact it will have on Chelsea.

“Our focus here is to ensure we apply the licence in order to protect the game, the club and its fans,” she said.

“Roman Abramovich cannot benefit from the club, but it is important to note that fans with existing tickets and existing season ticket holders can still go to matches. The matches will still go ahead, the staff at the club will still get paid and the players can still play.”

Asked whether the government had been too slow to impose these sanctions, Dorries added: “This country abides by the rule of law. In order to sanction someone you have to have the evidence to do so. I know the Foreign Office has been working very hard to gather than evidence together. They have now done so which is why those sanctions were announced this morning, which included Abramovich."

BBC Radio 5 Live

Roman Abramovich's attempt to sell Chelsea has been halted after the oligarch was sanctioned by the UK government as part of its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Simon in Jersey has been a Chelsea fan for 45 years.

He tells Radio 5 Live “whatever happens, if you’re a Chelsea fan, you’ll stick with them thick and thin”.

“There are other [oligarchs] out there just as bad as him, if not worse,” he says. “He’s just a nice guy for me, he’s done such a great deal for the club."

Simon also pointed out Abramovich “never furloughed any of the Chelsea staff during the pandemic”.

“He kept the hotel open for the NHS workers all free of charge, nobody ever mentions stuff like that, all they’re interested in is his affiliation with Putin.”

While Chelsea's sale is on hold for now, there have been plenty of potential suitors.

On Wednesday, the BBC reported there were 20 credible interested parties being handled by the US-based Raine Group.

British property developer Nick Candy was "actively exploring a number of options for a potential bid"..

Candy, a boyhood Chelsea fan, was trying to form a consortium with a number of international investors.

Abramovich has pledged to donate all funds from a Chelsea sale into a new foundation to benefit victims of Russia's war in Ukraine.

And should the Blues owner be able to prove his plans to Government officials, the sale of the Stamford Bridge club could yet go ahead.

Image source, Getty Images

Simon Stone
BBC Sport

There is no template for dealing with this type of situation and football's authorities are scrambling to work out the finer points.

For Chelsea, some elements are straightforward - and tricky.

They cannot offer new contracts - so the futures of Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and skipper Cesar Azpilicueta are uncertain. The loan of Saul Niguez will not be turned into a permanent deal. Chelsea cannot sell the numerous players they have on loan, including Armando Broja, who has impressed so much at Southampton. Presumably numerous younger players they would have given contracts to now will not get them.

But what about the detail? Can Chelsea sell tickets to their own fans for away games given they as a club do not benefit?

What will happen to the FA Cup semi-final - if they get there - when receipts are split between clubs?

Can Premier League clubs like Brentford - who were part-way through selling their away allocation for their trip to Stamford Bridge on 2 April - still do so, or do they have to stop?

And as for the £20,000 limit on expenses for away games, Chelsea have matches next week at Lille and Middlesbrough. Both would cost substantially more than £20,000. Can individuals make contributions or will Chelsea have to reduce the cost with a less expensive form of accommodation for Thomas Tuchel's side?

Clearly, the sale of the club needs to happen quickly if there is not to be a major impact. But that is in the hands of the government.

Roman Abramovich's funding meant Chelsea emerged from the financial impact of Covid-19 relatively unscathed. They will not escape from this.

Chelsea's shirt sponsor has issued a statement in the wake of sanctions from the UK government against club owner Roman Abramovich.

A Three spokesperson said:“We are in discussions with Chelsea and we are reviewing our position.”

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea will be subject to a transfer ban and be blocked from negotiating new contracts with current players, after all of Roman Abramovich's UK assets were frozen.

Defenders Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen are all out of contract at the end of the season, leaving the senior men's trio in a state of short-term limbo..

On the women's team, Ji So-yun, Maren Mjelde, Jonna Andersson and Drew Spence are coming to the end of contracts.

Image source, Getty Images

Brentford say they are seeking clarification from the Premier League on what the government sanctions mean for ticket sales for their match at Chelsea on 2 April.

The Bees confirmed some supporters have already bought tickets for the game at Stamford Bridge, but the planned release of the next batch of tickets this afternoon has been postponed.

The London club expect to sell 3,000 tickets for the game and say it "will do everything in our power" to try and ensure Bees fans take their full allocation.

Image source, Getty Images

• Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich sanctioned by UK government.
• Premier League club frozen as part of action; proposed sale halted for time being.
• Chelsea club shop must close, no more match tickets can be sold.
• Fans who bought season tickets or individual match tickets before today can attend games.
• Club can fulfil fixtures and pay wages of all employees, including players and coaching staff.
• No new player sales or purchases will be permitted under the licence, and discussions on new deals for players who are out of contract in the summer - such as men's team captain Cesar Azpilicueta - must go on hold
• Chelsea can pay "reasonable" costs of travel to and from fixtures but not exceeding £20,000 per game per team.
• Pay "reasonable" costs towards hosting home fixtures, not exceeding £500,000 per fixture per team.
• Broadcasters can broadcast any fixture involving the club.

READ MORE on the Abramovich sanctions here

BBC Radio 5 Live

More from Kieran Maguire on implications for Chelsea: “Chelsea’s wage bill is round about £28m a month. We don’t know how much cash they have in the bank. The most recent accounts we have are from June 2021 when there was £16m in the bank. Abramovich has been injecting money into Chelsea on a regular basis over recent years and presumably that won’t be able to continue.

"The concern might be what happens if Chelsea’s cash reserves are insufficient to pay their wage bill but presumably the government and Premier League, who have been working on this, will have been looking at it to try to minimise disruption on a club level.

“We need to see the terms of any sale licence. Presumably, the government would be in a position to ensure any funds from the sale of the club would go into an account that they can monitor to ensure that none of the proceeds go to Abramovich.

"He’s said the money would be paid into some form of funds to relieve victims in Ukraine so clearly the government would be careful to monitor how that money was collected from the sale of the club and then probably freeze it before releasing it to the appropriate sources."

BBC Radio 5 Live

Financial expert Kieran Maguire speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live: “In the short term, it’s to a large extent business as usual. Chelsea will be able to pay wages due at the end of March and will have other overheads. The government will have been working with the Premier League to try to ensure that there is no disruption as far as the remainder of the season. Ultimately it’s a sideshow given what is happening in Ukraine.

“In terms of the ability of the club to generate extra money, no matchday tickets will be able to be sold. The majority of tickets are via season tickets so shouldn’t make a significant difference to attendances. Going forward, Chelsea have some players who are out of contract at the end of June. First noises suggest no new contracts will be able to be signed until the period of freezing ends."

Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich is one of seven oligarchs to be hit with fresh sanctions, external by the UK government, including asset freezes and travel bans, as part of its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The list also includes billionaires Igor Sechin and Oleg Deripaska, both seen as allies of Vladimir Putin.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said "there can be no safe havens" for those who have supported the invasion.

READ MORE on the sanctions from BBC News

Image source, PA Media

BBC Radio 5 Live

ESPN senior writer Mark Ogden told BBC Radio 5 Live that there are plenty of questions still to be answered about what these sanctions mean for Chelsea's future.

“Regarding the tickets, what if they reach the FA Cup semi-finals? Will there be 50,000 empty seats where Chelsea fans should have been? Lots of questions need answering. It seems that the Premier League are still trying to digest the news.

"In the eyes of many fans across the world, Chelsea are the club of London – they’ve won more titles than anyone else. This could be a massive dent for the Premier League.

“It’s fair to say none of us know the details and it’s only the tip of the iceberg right now. It’s a big, bad day for Chelsea.”

BBC Radio 5 Live

ESPN senior writer Mark Ogden told BBC Radio 5 Live that the government sanctions imposed on Roman Abramovich could have serious ramifications for Chelsea.

“It’s multi-layered, it’s huge and it affects every little area of the club.

"They can’t sort out new contracts so they can’t negotiate a new contract with Antonio Rudiger who is one of their best players. He’s pretty certain to leave as a free agent.

"Once we see the fine print, it's cataclysmic for Chelsea. It’s unprecedented.

"Chelsea have become one of the biggest clubs in the world. Abramovich transformed them from a club with great ambition but nothing to back it up to the reigning European champions, the reigning world club champions.

"No matter what happens from this point, they won’t be the Chelsea we’ve grown to know. Abramovich has been loaning them what amounts to £90m a year, nobody does that anymore."

BBC Radio 5 Live

Daily Mail journalist Ian Herbert has been speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live about what these sanctions mean for Roman Abramovich and Chelsea.

“Despite everything he brought to the club in terms of pure financial power, the 19-year period at Chelsea has now been tainted.

“If there is a positive, it is that there is clearly a scramble to buy the club. Every billionaire going seems to be staking a claim.

"One imagines the government may be sympathetic to idea of a sale as obviously it will be deeply unpopular with very many football supporters if it doesn’t go ahead. There’s a bigger picture.

"Despite the fact Chelsea can’t make any money at the moment, they’ve got the TV money and they are still in the different competitions.

"My first reaction is that a sale probably would be allowed to happen.”