Citing an "unusual" sales process, the group has decided to end their interest in the football club

Although they were a frontrunner in the offers to purchase Chelsea F.C. the Ricketts Family, owners of the Chicago Cubs have decided to withdraw their bid on the club. This information came just before the Thursday, April 14 deadline.

There were only four bidders remaining, one of which was a consortium led by the Ricketts family investment group. On Friday, ESPN reported that the Ricketts family had decided to withdraw and not submit a final bid.

Released in a statement, the group said: "The Ricketts-Griffin-Gilbert Group has decided, after careful consideration, not to submit a final bid for Chelsea F.C." 

The statement continued: "In the process of finalizing[sic] their proposal, it became increasingly clear that certain issues could not be addressed given the unusual dynamics around the sales process. We have great admiration for Chelsea and its fans, and we wish the new owners well."

A source told ESPN that the reason for the withdrawal was due to the terms of the final proposal. However, it's become clear now that the decision was not made based on fan outrage from previous comments by the families patriarch. 

By the start of next week, the Raine Group, the New York-based merchant bank operating the sale, will announce a preferred bidder. Once announced the purchasing of Chelsea F.C. will move to the next step.

The final step of the sale is where The Department of Culture, Media and Sport will then give the final sign-off on the takeover, ending Roman Abramovich's 19-year tenure with the team.