Ukraine hits out at EU decision to unsanction former Arsenal owner Usmanov

Ukrainian officials have expressed strong disapproval over the European Union's decision to remove Alisher Usmanov, a former co-owner of Arsenal, from the sanctions list. Usmanov, an Uzbek-born oligarch who once owned nearly a third of the Premier League's leading club, was stripped of his sanction status alongside Russian financier Mikhail Fridman following a successful lobbying effort by the French state.

Usmanov sold his stake in Arsenal in 2018 for approximately £550 million and later formed strong commercial ties with Everton, where his former business partner Farhad Moshiri was the owner. Concerns have been raised that the decision could encourage other sanctioned Russians to have their restrictions eased through state-backed lobbying efforts, potentially paving the way for the likes of former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich to have his financial limitations lifted by the European bloc.

The sanctions list currently includes around 3,000 individuals, such as chess player and politician Sergey Karjakin, gymnasts Nikita Nagornyy and Alina Kabaeva, and former Formula 1 driver Nikita Mazepin. However, Mazepin's inclusion on the list was later annulled in 2024 after the EU General Court ruled that family ties alone were insufficient grounds for sanctioning.