Spotify owner, Daniel Ek has disclosed that he made a bid to buy Arsenal and was rejected by the Kroenke family.
Ek, via his Twitter handle, made the disclosure on Saturday. The 38-year-old Swedish billionaire had joined forces with Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira in hopes of persuading the current owners to sell the club.
He tweeted, “Inaccurate reports emerged today saying I have not made a bid for Arsenal Football Club.
I think it’s important to correct the record – this week an offer was made to both Josh Kroenke and their bankers that included fan ownership, representation at the board and a golden share for the supporters.
They said that they don’t need the money. I respect their decision but remain interested and available should that situation ever change.”
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Following reports today I want to correct the record with attached statement pic.twitter.com/CzfF0Y76K4
— Daniel Ek (@eldsjal) May 15, 2021
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What you should know about the bid
Stan Kroenke, who owns Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, is expected to want at least £2 billion if he is to consider selling the club he has run since April 2011.
Ek’s personal fortune is estimated to be around £3.4 billion although analysts say he would have some problems amassing the sum needed to tempt Kroenke into selling.
Arsenal was one of six English Premier League (EPL) clubs to sign up for the breakaway European Super League last month, before quickly withdrawing from the process after severe criticisms from fans.
Thousands of fans protested outside the Emirates Stadium before Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Everton on April 23 when Ek registered interest in buying the Gunners football club.