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By LUKE POWER, SPORTS REPORTER Published: 02: 48 AEDT, 7 February 2026 | Updated: 02: 48 AEDT, 7 February 2026 7 View comments Chelsea's atmosphere is bizarrely criticised in the Epstein Files, Daily Mail Sport can reveal.   A hedge fund manager named Tancredi Marchiolo emailed Jeffrey Epstein in May 2016 to pass comment on the 'silent' atmosphere at British football matches.   And we can reveal that Marchiolo discussed setting up a meeting between Epstein and former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who was forced to sell the club in 2022. It is unclear from the files if Epstein and Abramovich ever met.   Marchiolo - whose name appears more than 1, 000 times in the files - was hosted by Abramovich at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the 2015-16 season. He attended Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Leicester City, the final match of a disastrous campaign in which the Blues limped to 10th under Guus Hiddink. They had sacked Jose Mourinho while sat 16th in the table in December.   Marchiolo wrote to Epstein afterwards: 'That was another match, I was at Chelsea-Leicester with him. He owns Chelsea only reason I went to stadium. .. .v funny, football matches in UK are as silent as tennis matches in Italy. '  Chelsea are randomly mentioned in the Epstein Files as a hedge fund manager criticised their atmosphere in May 2016 in an email to Jeffrey Epstein  Tancredi Marchiolo claimed that he was hosted by Roman Abramovich for the game - and wanted to set up a meeting between him and Epstein  Epstein was first convicted in 2008 of soliciting prostitution from a minor, for which he was registered as a sex offender. He was imprisoned between June 2008 in the Palm Beach County jail in Florida, and released early 13 months later in July 2009. Almost seven years after Epstein's release, Marchiolo suggested that he should meet Abramovich. 'Ciao you planning Europe? There's someone you should definitely meet, ' he wrote, a couple of days before the game. Epstein revealed that he was in Paris, and Marchiolo named his recommendation as Abramovich. Epstein then claimed that they had 'never met - his wife looked at my house' and suggested New York as a location to meet.   Marchiolo and Epstein do not appear to have discussed the Russian oligarch beyond that. His name was mentioned in September 2016 in an email sent to Epstein by Barbro Ehnbom, a Swedish-American businesswoman, but the context is unclear.   Elsewhere in the files, in emails of no connection to Abramovich, Marchiolo discusses women.   For example, in September 2011, Epstein wrote to him asking, 'what would you like me to do with your friend? ', to which he replied: 'Hit on her! ' The shameful Epstein continued: 'Do you want me to try to do her. . or just torture her'.   Epstein suggested meeting Abramovich in New York, but there is no evidence that they had contact or that an encounter ever materialised  Meanwhile, emails released by the US Department of Justice have shown that Jeffrey Epstein sought to organise meetings with Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly in 2011 It is not clear if Marchiolo replied specifically to that, but two days later he said: 'She wrote me on Black Berry Messenger that you are very nice and clever and sent a smiley face. She has excellent oral skills. ' There are other instances elsewhere of Marchiolo discussing setting up Epstein with women.    Menwhile, Chelsea's current co-owner Todd Boehly arranged two business meeting with convicted sex offender Epstein after his first stint in prison. In January 2011, Boehly appears to have been introduced to Epstein via an associate called David Mitchell, a New York-based property developer. Boehly, who is also a co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Lakers, is head of holding company Eldridge Industries, whose investments include media, real estate, and asset management. At the time however, he was a managing partner at financial services Guggenheim Partners, which was then responsible for managing over $100billion-worth of assets. Epstein's then-assistant Lesley Groff exchanged emails with Mitchell, initially writing: 'Jeffrey requested I touch base with you on your "Guggenheim person". .. might this person be able to come see Jeffrey Mon or Tues (Jan 17 or 18)'. Boehly is established as the contact mentioned, with a meeting confirmed between Groff and Epstein for 11am on Tuesday January 18. The Epstein Files reveals that Marchiolo finds football matches in the United Kingdom 'silent' Around the time he visited Chelsea, Marchiolo attempted to set up a meeting between Epstein and Abramovich - there is no evidence it took place  In other emails unrelated to Chelsea, Marchiolo and Epstein discuss women sexually In April of that year, Groff sent another email to Epstein, detailing an attempt to call Boehly, and confirming that she had asked his assistant to ask Boehly to call Epstein back. Later, in September 2011, the second meeting was proposed by Mitchell in an email with the subject line 'Peter Mandelsohn', with the developed asking: 'Can we get together with my friend Jeffery (sic) to speak about bringing Peter into the Irish situation. Is there some time that work for you? ' If Mitchell's initial spelling is incorrect, the 'Peter' referenced could be Peter Mandelson, the former British ambassador to the United States who was dismissed from the role last September amid revelations about his ties to Epstein and the late predator's convicted sex-trafficker associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Boehly replied to this email five days later on September 12 approvingly, adding that he was 'in Europe'. After back and forth between Groff, Mitchell, Epstein, and Boehly's 'mission control' responsible for his diary Emily Curtis, a conference call was confirmed for September 19 according to an email sent by Mitchell to Curtis that morning. There is no suggestion in the emails that Boehly was involved in Epstein in anything other than a business sense, nor is there evidence of in the released emails of further contact. Daily Mail Sport has contacted Boehly's representative for comment.

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