Chelsea Football Club, owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, were crowned champions of England for the third time at the weekend, after demolishing Wigan 8-0. The destruction extinguished any forlorn hopes harboured from Manchester United and their supporters for a miracle in the eleventh hour that would have seen them leapfrog their rivals at the top of the table. But with the blistering form of the Chelsea, it was hard to imagine just how a struggling Wigan side would vanquish them.

It may be a sweet sporting victory for Abramovich but it comes at a price. The club is the third greatest loss-maker in financial terms in the English Premier League with a net income of - £47 million. Manchester City owned by Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan of the Abu Dhabi ruling family in 2008 ran up losses of £90 million while Liverpool had a net income of – £54 million.

By contrast Manchester United, owned by the Glazer family who also own the NFL team Tampa Bay Buccaneers turned a profit of £93 million. Of the 20 teams in the Premier League only six turned a profit. Manchester United was by far the most successful in financial terms but, after a £500 million bond issue revealed the complex debt structure of the Glazer family, are mired in controversy with the Red Knights investor group trying to take the club off the owners’ hands.

American owners of Liverpool, Tom Hicks and George Gillett have put the club up for sale and other owners are said to be weighing their appetite for spiraling costs against the kudos (possibly) of on-field success.

Abramovich, second in the Sunday Times Rich List this year, is apparently not fazed by the cost of supporting Chelsea and basks as the Club’s owner, frequently flying guests in from Russia on his private jet to join him in the owner’s box at the Stamford Bridge ground to watch his team compete.