The richest man in Africa, Aliko Dangote, has given an explanation for his decision to back out of his $4 billion purchase of Arsenal, an English football team.
In a Monday interview with Bloomberg TV in New York, Dangote said that the chance to purchase the team was gone.
In addition, he stated that he lacks the spare cash to support investing $4 billion in a football team for marketing purposes alone.
Dangote claims that as one of Arsenal’s greatest supporters, he will never stop showing his devotion to and affection for the team. He did, however, clarify that it is no longer financially feasible for him to spend so much money to buy the team.
That time, in my opinion, has passed. I told you during our previous conversation that I would try to purchase Arsenal as soon as I finished the refinery.
The problem is that, as you can see, prices have increased. The club is flourishing. Arsenal is performing admirably. Arsenal wasn’t performing all that well at the time. As you may have noticed, I don’t exactly have the extra cash on hand to go out and purchase a club for $4 billion and utilize it for nothing more than promotional purposes.
“I’ll just keep being the biggest Arsenal player,” Every day, I watch their games. I will always be a big Arsenal fan. However, I believe that purchasing Arsenal today will be wise,” Dangote stated.
Arsenal or Dangote Refinery Completion
Furthermore, the richest man in Nigeria disclosed that he was forced to decide between investing $2 billion to purchase the football team or finishing the $20 billion Dangote refinery.
In the end, he made the decision to concentrate on completing the refinery, a legacy project that many thought would never be completed.
Even though he acknowledged his regret not buying the club at the time, Dangote insisted that investing in the refinery was the wisest course of action.
“I wish I had purchased Arsenal sooner.” However, I needed my money to finish my tasks, not to buy Arsenal. For two billion dollars, I would have purchased it.
However, I could not have completed my project. I have to decide whether to go buy Arsenal or finish my work. Many people didn’t think our refineries would be finished, therefore I think moving ahead and finishing them was the smartest course of action,” Dangote continued.
Things to be aware about
Aliko Dangote, the richest man in Africa, indicated interest in purchasing Arsenal FC, an English football team, in 2020 for a reported $2 billion.
The club’s open supporter Dangote expressed his desire to acquire the majority of the faltering team’s shares, which greatly infuriated the supporters.
There were other businessmen who had expressed interest in buying the football team besides Dangote.
Daniel Ek, the creator of Spotify, made a well-publicized takeover offer in 2022, but it was quickly rejected.
Dangote would have been the first and only Nigerian businessman to acquire an English football club if the agreement between the club and him had been completed.
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