Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich loses his third attempt to overturn EU sanctions

The European Union's General Court rejected Roman Abramovich's third attempt to lift the asset freeze and travel ban imposed on him after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, ruling on Wednesday, Sept. 9 that his shareholdings alone justify the measures.

The former Chelsea owner was added to the bloc's sanctions list in 2022. The court has now turned him down three times, following judgments on Dec. 20, 2023 and Sept. 10, 2025.

Abramovich argued the EU was seeking to exploit him on account of his public notoriety. The court rejected that, holding he was listed lawfully because of his stakes in the metals producers Evraz and Norilsk Nickel, both of which it found provide a substantial source of revenue for the Russian government.

His holding in Evraz is 28.64%, and he has long been its largest shareholder. Steel generated 66.3% of the company's revenue in 2021.

The reasoning matters beyond this case. The judges held that a large, longstanding stake was sufficient on its own, without evidence that Abramovich controlled the company, supported Moscow or influenced the Kremlin. Leading businessperson, in the court's reading, means economic weight rather than political access.

It also found the listing criteria proportionate, describing them as objective and sufficiently precise, and said they target people operating in a context where the main economic operators have close ties to the Russian state, and in sectors generating significant revenue for the government.

Niall Moran, assistant professor of EU sanctions law at Dublin City University, said the evidential test is real but the threshold the Council must reach to satisfy it is not especially demanding.

That leaves a low bar for other sanctioned businesspeople contesting their designations on the grounds that they exercise no political influence, and numerous Russian businessmen are pursuing similar challenges. Brussels is separately preparing a tougher blacklist for October.

The case, registered as T-358/25, concerned a Council decision extending the sanctions. Abramovich sought annulment and €1 million in damages for what he described as non-material harm from his continued listing. The court dismissed both and ordered him to pay the Council's legal costs.

He holds Russian, Israeli and Portuguese citizenship and lives in a residential complex outside Moscow. Forbes estimates his fortune at $9.2 billion.

British sanctions have gone further on the company itself. The United Kingdom sanctioned Evraz in May 2022, saying it produced 28% of Russia's railway wheels and 97% of its rails, and that Russia used its rail infrastructure to move troops and supplies to the front. When sanctioning Abramovich in March 2022, Britain said the company could have supplied steel to the Russian military for tank production.

Abramovich sold Chelsea in 2022 to a consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. The proceeds remain frozen.