Colourful, controversial and significant - ex-Chelsea and Leeds owner Bates dies

Ken Bates, the former owner of Chelsea and Leeds United, has died at the age of 94. Described as one of the most colourful, controversial, and highly significant figures in modern football, Bates is best known for buying Chelsea for £1 in 1982 and selling it to Roman Abramovich for £140m in 2003. He also owned Leeds United from 2005 to 2013 and was a member of the FA executive committee, playing a key role in the rebuilding of Wembley Stadium. At Chelsea, Bates inherited a club facing bankruptcy with debts of £1.5m but transformed it into a powerful force, winning the FA Cup twice, the League Cup, and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1998. He secured Stamford Bridge as the club's home through a long legal battle and created the Chelsea Pitch Owners scheme to protect the stadium's land. Bates was never far from controversy, notably erecting an electric fence at Stamford Bridge in the 1980s to prevent pitch invasions, though it was never switched on for safety reasons.