Ukraine’s richest man Rinat Akhmetov threatened to punch international football referees, raising questions about his past and present

What did Rinat Akhmetov, the soccer-crazed Ukrainian billionaire, mean when he warned referees that he was a former boxing champion, and that things could “end up badly for them” if he did not control his “emotions” in response to unfair judging on their part of games involving his Shakhtar Donetsk team?

The comments were posted on Oct. 27 in the form of an interview with Akhmetov on his Shakhtar soccer team’s website. When asked if he would barge into the referee’s room like Igor Kolomoisky, another Ukrainian billionaire, did when he felt his Dnipro team had been unfairly treated in a game, Akhmetov said:

“I think I wouldn’t have, but let me advise the referees that I am a former professional boxer. Let them keep in mind if I do come, it will end badly. I hope it will not come to that. I will try to control my emotions but if they suddenly drive me up the wall I cannot say how I will behave, whether I will be quick-tempered, whether I will throw a series [of punches] or not. If I do, it will end badly for them. So let them be careful, professional and honest.”

He probably intended it as a humorous comment, but it looks too much like a warning to be funny. Certainly, the comments should not be taken lightly considering they come from a man reputed to be Ukraine’s richest billionaire and one of the country’s most influential individuals. It’s also not the way a lawmaker and major backer of a leading presidential candidate – Victor Yanukovych – should be talking in public.

Akhmetov has in recent years doled out tens of millions of dollars into non-government organizations and his private charities. He has pumped even more – hundreds of millions – to build one of Europe’s best stadiums in Donetsk. Giving back millions from his billions, he has attempted to gain more legitimacy and a better business and personal reputation.

But such boxer-style rhetoric does not help Akhmetov shed questions about his past. Does it offer insight into how he managed to snap up billion-dollar assets during Ukraine’s wild and lawless 1990s, when the fight for assets was plain deadly? His former boss and mentor, Akhat Bragin, used to control the Shakthar team, but was blown up by a bomb in the 1990s.