- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: Willow (4 Oct 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0007189834
- ISBN-13: 978-0007189830
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.6 x 4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
201,119 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #40 in Books > Sports, Hobbies & Games > Football > British > Football Clubs > Chelsea
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Product Description
Review
'…a fascinating biography.' Daily Mirror
'A rare insight into the Chelsea boss and a must-read for both football fans and business tycoons.' Sunday Business Post (Ireland)
‘For players and fans alike of the beautiful game, it seems Roman Abramovich has everything to pay for’ BBC
Review
'The second-richest man in Russia and the world's 49th wealthiest person, with a fortune of GBP1.8bn' Forbes Magazine 'For players and fans alike of the beautiful game, it seems Roman Abramovich has everything to pay for' BBC
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
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.
18 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
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.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I think it suffers from the fact that Abramovich is very secretive and also seems to ensure that none of his associates or employees will speak much about him. Yes Abramovich bought Sibneft but how did he find $50 million to fund his share? That was an incredible amount of money at the time when Russia was virtually bankrupt. More than 90% of Russians would have struggled to raise even $1000 in cash. And contrary to what the book suggests it wasn't easy to make money in a respectable way trading oil in Russia in the 90s, cargoes were stolen and trading companies placed into liquidation owing millions having been bled dry of funds beforehand. What did Abramovich do exactly? The book certainly doesn't tell us.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A Man of Mystery
It's impossible to read this book without being appalled by the oligarchs' greed and disrespect for the people of Russia - so the authors must have been concerned for their welfare... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Dottie
Perfect!
After ordering this, I received the book very quickly - within two days. Packaging was great. Shows how the person values her customers. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mr Prestige
excellent
Book arrived on time and in excellent condition.I am very impressed with the service of Amazon and will recommend the business to other people.
Well done Amazon.
Well done Amazon.
Published 8 months ago by ricko
Hasn't got the lingo.
The fact that the author can't even pronounce the name 'Abramovich' tells us all we need to know about this book. I see Russian TV is claiming that the book is a UK best seller. Read more
Published 17 months ago by C. Skillen
OK but mistakes
As a Chelsea FC fan I wanted this to be more of a kick in the teeth for Roman but it was nicer than that, if you like him you'll find interesting stories and anecdotes that are... Read more
Published on 26 Aug 2009 by Kelkoozee
Abramovich: The billionaire from nowhere
Very good book and well written. Gives a good insight into the workings of the man and a breif description on how he obtained a vast wealth, should definately be read by people who... Read more
Published on 1 Sep 2005 by "mdrifle"
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. Read more
Published on 28 April 2005 by Mul
Got me singin' the blues
Great read even for an Arsenal fan. Loved the stuff about Abramovich and the Kremlin. Best football book I have read this year.
Published on 1 Mar 2005
A secretive subject makes for a rather thin expose
I am fascinated both by Roman Abramovich and by Russian politics and buisness of the 90's, so this book should have been perfect for me. Read more
Published on 9 Feb 2005
Quite interesting
This is quite an interesting, well written book.How accurate it is remains something only Roman could answer. Read more
Published on 7 Jan 2005 by D. Parsons
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