Cheryl and Ashley Cole split: Chelsea star 'will hang on to his millions'

23 February 2010 19:12
The Chelsea and England star is facing life alone after his wife announced their separation. [LNB]Her decision to end the three-and-a-half year marriage follows claims that the footballer slept with an American woman during Chelsea's pre-season tour in Seattle last year. [LNB]Madonna divorces Guy Ritchie for unreasonable behaviourAshley Cole set for privacy battleLittle Britain star Matt Lucas to divorce partner Kevin McGeeHowever, Vanessa Lloyd Platt, a high-profile divorce lawyer, said: "Ashley could have slept with half the women in England and it would not affect the settlement unless he had been spending their money on them. [LNB] "The Coles had a short marriage and no children; the courts treat these cases very differently to 20-year relationships with kids involved. She has independent wealth, so will probably receive half of any assets they built up during the marriage." [LNB]Alan Kaufman, head of family law at Finers Stephens Innocent, said Cole's rumoured move to Spain or Italy could have a bearing on the divorce settlement. [LNB]He said: "They are both multimillionaires and so it could be a very quick divorce with no claims on either side. They will keep their independent wealth and go their separate ways." [LNB]However, Mr Kaufman went on: "If he was to move to Real Madrid for higher wages in the summer, could that impact the settlement? Her lawyers will certainly be keeping an eye on things." [LNB]The footballer earns £120,000 a week £6.2 million a year at Chelsea, under a four-year deal signed last year. [LNB]He was dubbed "Cashley Cole" after disclosing his autobiography that he almost crashed his car in shock on learning that Arsenal, his former club, was offering him a mere £55,000 per week. [LNB]Cheryl Cole earned £1.2 million for her role as a judge on the last series of The X Factor and will make considerably more if she takes up Simon Cowell's offer to become a judge on the planned US version. [LNB]She also has a deal as the face of L'Oreal hair products, reported to be worth £500,000, and has banked several million from her career with Girls Aloud. [LNB]The couple have a joint fortune of £17 million, according to the most recent "rich lists". [LNB]They pocketed £1 million from a glossy magazine for coverage of their wedding. Their Surrey mansion, bought for £3.5 million in 2008, is thought to be worth £6 million now following renovations. [LNB]Before their 2006 wedding, the Girls Aloud singer said she found the idea of a prenuptial agreement "disgusting". [LNB] "I think that's defeating the point. We're getting married because we're committing ourselves to each other to spend the rest of our lives together. No ifs and buts," she said. [LNB] "I think [pre-nups] are disgusting. I could understand if you're 93 and you've got billions of pounds and this 24-year-old wants to marry you in a month. But we're a work in progress, we're going to build our married life together not thinking about if it ever ends." [LNB]After the couple wed, Cole added to her tattoo collection by having "Mrs C" inscribed on her neck. [LNB]

Source: Telegraph