According to Sky News, sources have revealed that Sir Lewis and Ms Williams have pledged an estimated £10 million each to the bid for Chelsea, which is being spearheaded by Sir Martin Broughton.
The pair have been in talks with the group of investors for several weeks now.
The bid is one of three finalists that are being considered by Raine Group, a US merchant bank that is overseeing the auction on behalf of Roman Abramovich and West London club’s board.
The majority of the financial backing from Broughton’s bid will come from Josh Harris and David Blitzer, the owners of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment – an American sports entertainment company that was founded in 2017.
The club is expected to be sold for around £2.5 billion. The involvement of Sir Lewis has come as a shock for many as he is a well-known Arsenal fan.
However, both sports stars have become established investors in their own right over the last few years.
Serena Williams has managed her own venture capital fund, Serena Ventures, which this week announced an investment in Opensponsorship – a UK-based sports technology start-up. Sir Lewis to has invested in a range of businesses including Zapp, a London-based grocery delivery app.
Currently, Raine Group are evaluating the three offers that are currently on the table and are expected to pitch their preferred bidder to the government this week.
Sources have suggested that the diversity of Sir Martin’s roster of investors was one of the factors that had persuaded Sir Lewis and Ms Williams to become involved with the Chelsea bid.
It has been claimed that Sir Lewis will likely play a formal role in Chelsea’s future in an effort to promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
Both He and Ms Williams have been vocal advocates within their respective sports for promoting equality and lending their names to a variety of anti-discrimination initiatives.
