Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the president and chief executive of the Dangote Group, has expressed regret for missing the chance to acquire Arsenal Football Club at the time of its estimated $2 billion valuation.
In an interview with Bloomberg’s Francine Lacqua, the billionaire businessman conveyed his long-held desire to own a football team and emphasized that he wishes he had taken action sooner to secure ownership of the English team.
Dangote revealed that he ultimately lost out on the opportunity to invest in Arsenal due to his decision to focus on a significant refinery project, a choice he now looks back on with regret.[/p>
He stated, “I think that time has passed. The last time when we had this interview, I told you as soon as I finish with the refinery, I am going to try and buy Arsenal.”
Continuing, he said, “But you know everything has gone up and the club too is doing very well; Arsenal is doing extremely well right now. At that time, Arsenal wasn’t doing well.”[/p>
Dangote further explained his current financial position, saying, “I think I don’t have that kind of excess liquidity to go and buy a club for $4 billion so to speak and use it as a promotional something.”[/p>
Despite his regret, he affirmed his commitment to supporting Arsenal, saying, “What I will do is to continually be the biggest fan of Arsenal. I watch their games anytime they are playing. So, I will remain a major supporter of Arsenal, but I don’t think it makes sense today to buy Arsenal.”[/p>
When asked if he regretted not purchasing the club when its value was lower, he admitted, “Actually, I regret not buying it before, but you know my money was more needed in completing my project (Dangote refinery) than buying Arsenal. I would have bought the club for $2 billion, but you know I wouldn’t have been able to finish my project. So, it was either I finish my project or go and buy Arsenal.”[/p>