Roman Abramovich sues publisher of Putin's People over claims he bought Chelsea on Kremlin orders

Russian billionaire and owner of London football club Chelsea Roman Abramovich has filed a lawsuit in England against the publishing house HarperCollins over the book Putin's People, published in 2020. According to the Financial Times, the lawsuit was also filed against the author of the book, the publication's former Moscow correspondent Catherine Belton.

The lawsuit was brought over false and defamatory statements made in the book Putin's People, law firm Harbottle & Lewis LLP, which represents Abramovich, said in a statement published on the Chelsea website.

"The book falsely alleges that our client acted corruptly and makes false claims about our client's purchase of Chelsea Football Club and its activities. Such allegations are completely unacceptable and without foundation," Abramovich's lawyers said.

As the FT points out, the book Putin's People contains a statement by banker Sergei Pugachev , who claims that Roman Abramovich bought the Chelsea club in 2003 on the personal instructions of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Roman Abramovich, commenting on the lawsuit, said that he went to court when "it became clear that the false allegations in this book were having a detrimental effect not only on my personal reputation, but also on the activities of Chelsea Football Club." The businessman noted that his representatives tried to reach an agreement with the publishing house HarperCollins to avoid litigation, but "the publisher did not correct the false statements in the book."

Chelsea Football Club, whose website published Abramovich's statement, declined to comment. "The club and its staff are proud of the many achievements under Mr Abramovich's leadership," the team said in a statement.

• In 2020, Roman Abramovich was ranked 10th in the Forbes ranking of Russia's richest businessmen. At the time, the magazine estimated his fortune at $11.3 billion. In the Real Time Billionaires ranking of the richest people on the planet, which Forbes compiles in real time, Abramovich ranks 143rd with a fortune of $14.3 billion. Bloomberg estimates his fortune at $17.8 billion in its ranking.