With the ill-fated European Super League now left in ruins, the fallout of the attempted league is still sending shock waves through European football.
For the uninitiated, it appears the breakaway league was the collective brainchild of the wealthy owners of some of Europe’s top clubs, including English teams Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Arsenal. The latter’s owner, Stan Kroenke, who owns Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, is under increasing pressure from fans to sell the club to someone more receptive to fans’ interests.
Step forward, Swedish entrepreneur and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek. Although he’s a widely disliked character in the music industry (his quote “you can’t record music once every three to four years and think that’s going to be enough,” lives in infamy), in the world of football, that reputation doesn’t seem to have followed him. Of course, that could be because he’s joining three Arsenal legends in his bid: Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira.
This isn’t the first time Ek has expressed interest in buying a football team, although this reportedly never got past the earliest stages. With Arsenal, however, it looks a bit more personal for the 38-year-old billionaire. On Friday, Ek took to Twitter to write: “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 into the ring.”
Kroenke, who has run the club since 2011, is said to want at least £2bn to even consider selling the club. However, Stan Kroenke’s son, Josh Kroenke, has gone on record as saying his family have “no intention” of selling, adding, “I still believe we’re fit to carry on in our positions as custodians of Arsenal.”
Although Arsenal has declined to make any official comment, fans no doubt feel differently than Josh Kroenke. After a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Everton at the weekend, the North London side is now 12 points behind fourth-placed Chelsea. If they are to have any hope of playing European football next year, they now need to win the Europa League—a prospect many are doubtful of.
