http://www.sportbusiness.com/news/174894/arsenal-on-brink-of-takeover?utm_source=sbinsl&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=apr13
A takeover at English Premier League club Arsenal looks imminent after shareholder Nina Bracewell-Smith decided to sell her stake of nearly 16 per cent.
Bracewell-Smith’s decision was reported yesterday by London newspaper the Evening Standard, which said US financial advisors Blackstone had been appointed to find a buyer.
Two of the club’s other shareholders, billionaires Stan Kroenke and Alisher Usmanov, want control of the team, and if either buy the stake, they will go over a 30 per cent shareholding threshold that demands a mandatory takeover bid.
Bloomberg reports that the deal would probably value the club at over £500 million, making Bracewell-Smith’s holding worth £80 million.
Rival Premier League club Liverpool are also nearing a change of ownership. Reuters reports an unnamed source as saying that the club’s US owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett are ready to sell their entire shareholding. Banking group Barclays are expected to be appointed to manage the sale.