Product Description

Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea FC, was a penniless orphan who rose from the ashes of Soviet Russia to become one of the richest and most powerful men in the world. His fascinating life story has been shrouded in mystery -- until now. Journalists Dominic Midgley and Chris Hutchins get to grips with the Russian boss of Chelsea FC, who has revolutionised English football since he bought the club in the summer of 2003, since when it has won two Premiership titles. Every aspect of his past, present and future is examined -- his upbringing, including his Jewish background, the friendships that helped him break into the top ranks of the Kremlin, his leading role in the rise of the oligarchs in Russia, the business deals that made him a fortune in less than ten years, and the ambition that promises to make him as big a name in the West as in his homeland. Using exhaustive primary research, the authors uncover the exclusive stories behind the billions Ambramovich made in Russia as Western-style capitalism was introduced by President Putin. They also investigate his reasons for investing part of it in a fashionable London football club. The rise of Roman Abramovich from provincial orphan to one of the most powerful men in Russia is a story that has all the ingredients of a thriller: risk-taking, courage, shrewdness, ruthlessness and, above all, a subtle and manipulative charm.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #42977 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Review
'An explosive book' Mail on Sunday '!essentially a book about what makes Abramovich tick!well worth a peek.' Sunday Times 'A rags-to-riches tale of enormous proportions and is definitely worth a look' Scotland on Sunday

The Times
'Well researched and fluently written.'

The Independent
'The absorbing Abramovich gives a blow-by-blow of the Russian mogul's extraordinary rise.'

Customer Reviews

Useful account of a villain
This is a useful account of the career of Roman Abramovich. In the 1990s, Russia's new capitalist class seized through privatisation the enormous wealth that the country's workers had produced during the Soviet generations.

Abramovich always attaches himself to powerful patrons. In the early 1990s, he befriended President Boris Yeltsin's crony Boris Berezovsky. In 1995, Berezovsky loaned the government $100 million for 51% of Sibneft ('Siberian Oil'), Russia's sixth biggest oil company worth $2.8 billion then (and $15 billion in 2003), and sold it to himself in another sham auction 18 months later for $110 million. Abramovich owned all the bidders in the auction. They robbed the government of $2.7 billion.

Russia's Audit Chamber reported that the sale was conducted with 'multiple legal violations' and 'should be considered invalid'. In 2003, Berezovsky had to flee Russia, and the Blair government gave him political asylum. Labour loves billionaires, however dodgy.

Abramovich broke company law by selling shares in Noyabrsk, Sibneft's extraction arm, to Sibneft at discount. The buyers transferred their shares to Sibneft two months later. He conned workers out of their share vouchers and slashed their wages.

Putin set up tax havens inside Russia, whereby regional governors could offer inward investors huge tax breaks. Abramovich took advantage of this by becoming governor of the province of Chukotka. He evaded regional taxes on Sibneft's profits by selling oil at discount to its subsidiary in Chukotka, which would then sell it to the end user at the higher market price. This gained Abramovich $500 million, far more than he spent on Chukotka, about $230 million. So the region lost $270 million net from his governorship. 'Profit not production' is Russia's mantra nowadays, and not just Russia's.

Abramovich is one of Britain's richest men, worth £7.5 billion at 38 years old. He famously bought Chelsea Football Club in July 2003, which a fellow-capitalist called 'the cheapest insurance policy in history'. The Financial Services Authority is still investigating the insider dealing on Chelsea shares, and seven dodgy offshore trusts' ownership of Chelsea shares. All great fortunes begin in crime.

Disappointing
Although most of the bits about Abramovich I didn't know were interesting I was alarmed about the number of factual errors relating to Chelsea FC. Adrian Mutu has never played for Real Madrid (and is definately not 30) and Frank Lampard was not purchased during the Abramovich era (these errors stand out amongst others). I was left wondering that if the authors couldn't get these simple (and easily checked) facts right then how am I to trust everything else they've written. Maybe it's just a lack of attention to detail but it's still disappointing.

Thoroughly Recommend reading this..
This was bought for me as a present and I haven't put it down yet. I know nothing about the man, chelsea (or football in general really) nor Russian politics. If you'd like to know more about all these things then its a great read. It does tend to stay clear of Abramovich himself for a significant amount of the book by discussing the circumstances around him. However, still very interesting. Only half way through, but very good.