A magazine that accused Ken Bates, the former Chelsea chairman, of plotting the murder of his business rivals is at risk of being shut down in a legal battle over the false claim.

Mr Bates, who acquired Chelsea football club for a token sum of 1 in 1982, has filed a winding-up petition against BusinessF1 Magazine, a specialist Formula One industry publication.

A winding-up petition is a legal mechanism for recovering unpaid debts that can result in businesses being liquidated. Mr Bates has taken the action as he seeks to recover damages and costs from BusinessF1 Magazine following a legal victory in October.

The 93-year-old businessman, who lives in Monaco, successfully sued BusinessF1 Magazine for libel over a profile that made several false claims including that he arranged the murder of business rivals and conned investors. A High Court judge ruled that the article in question amounted to “comprehensive character assassination”.

The judge ruled the profile, titled “The biggest ‘wrong-un’ in sport,” was libellous and ordered BusinessF1 Magazine and its main shareholder Tom Rubython to pay Mr Bates’ legal costs and 150,000 in damages.

Mr Bates was represented in the High Court by experienced barrister William McCormick KC, who was instructed by specialist libel law firm Carter-Ruck. His legal costs are likely to be substantial.

The article, which ran across four pages, put forward various allegations against Mr Bates including claims he evaded taxes, conned investors,...

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