Wednesday 02 July 2003 Russian businessman buys Chelsea football club  | Chelsea football club has been bought by a Russian oil tycoon, Roman Abramovich, for a hundred million dollars. He has agreed to pay off the club's debts of another hundred million dollars. But who is Mr Abramovich? And where did he get his money from? This report from Nikolai Gorshkov: |
 Listen to the story Roman Abramovich is probably the most elusive of all Russian oligarchs - a group of a dozen people who among them own most of Russia's wealth. Not much is known about him. He's thirty-six years old, governs the vast barren region of Chukotka, across the straits from Alaska, sits in the upper chamber of the Russian parliament, and now owns Chelsea Football Club.
He's made his fortune, which at about five billion dollars is believed to be the second largest in Russia, through controversial privatisation deals in the country's oil and aluminium industries. He was investigated for shady dealings but nothing came out of it. He was introduced into the murky world of Russia's big business by Boris Berezovsky, one of the first tycoons, who enjoyed the trust of the former president, Boris Yeltsin. Mr Abramovich then went on to become a closest confidant of Mr Yeltsin's family. And he survived the wrath of President Putin who pushed his business partner Berezovsky into exile in London.
Mr Abramovich himself set up a base in London. Through a UK-registered company he owns large stakes in many lucrative businesses in Russia. Just recently he sold off his shares in the Russian airline Aeroflot for over a hundred million dollars, the money he might have used to buy Chelsea. His move is the latest in a series of large acquisitions made by Russian business tycoons abroad. They may be trying to protect their rich pickings, but this is also in line with President Putin's ambition to see Russian business as a truly international player.
Nikolai Gorshkov, BBC, Moscow
Listen to the words oligarchs members of a small group of people who control and run a particular country or organisation shady dealings slightly dishonest buying and selling in business - here, shady is an informal use nothing came out of it there were no results, nothing was found murky here, something that is suspected of being dishonest or morally wrong tycoons people who have been successful in business and who have become rich and powerful as a result base headquarters; a centre of activity stakes shares - if you have a stake in something its success matters to you because you own a large part of it lucrative profit-making; a lucrative business or activity which earns you a lot of money rich pickings large profits; money that can be made easily in a particular place in line with in accordance with, in agreement with  Read more about this story | |  | | | SEARCH IN LEARNING ENGLISH | | | |
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