Spotify founder teams up with 3 Invincibles to lodge Arsenal takeover bid
By Tom Gott
The founder of Spotify, Daniel Ek, has joined forces with Arsenal legends Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Dennis Bergkamp to put together a formal offer to buy the Gunners from current owner Stan Kroenke.
Ek revealed his interest in buying Arsenal after thousands of fans took to the streets to protest against Kroenke and his involvement in the Super League, and it was later confirmed that he was not messing about with his comments.
As a kid growing up, I’ve cheered for @Arsenal as long as I can remember. If KSE would like to sell Arsenal I'd be happy to throw my hat in the ring.
— Daniel Ek (@eldsjal) April 23, 2021
The Times claim that Arsenal did not believe Ek's interest was genuine, but they are in for a rude awakening as The Telegraph state that the Spotify founder has teamed up with some Arsenal legends to try get a deal done.
Ek is expected to table a formal offer to Kroenke in the near future and hopes that the involvement of Henry, Vieira and Bergkamp will force the current owner to take their proposal seriously.
As part of the deal, the three Invincibles are all understood to be open to the idea of returning to the Emirates to use their knowledge as part of a new-look boardroom.
“This club belongs to the fans, I love the club and I will support the club until I die, but I do not recognise my club and what happened just now, with them trying to join a league that would have been closed, makes no sense to me,” Henry recently confessed to The Telegraph.
“They have been running the club like a company, not a football club, and they showed their hand. Maybe it’s a lack of understanding of the core football values and maybe the money was too big of a temptation. But whatever it was, they got it wrong. Badly wrong.
“I was genuinely shocked like most people and couldn’t believe what was unfolding. I have never talked before, but what happened recently made me realise fans, this is your club. It is your club and I’m an Arsenal fan too. I’m proud of what the fans achieved. Not just Arsenal fans, all the fans. The result was a victory for football.”
Unfortunately for Ek, Kroenke is not thought to be interested in selling. His son Josh, who is a director at the club, recently told fans that the group plan on staying as they still see themselves as best for the club.
KSE value the club at close to £2bn and would demand that asking price be met before they even considered any offer.