Billionaire Elon Musk, boss of Tesla and SpaceX, claimed in a tweet on Tuesday evening that he was buying English football club Manchester United.
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In a sibylline tweet, the wealthy entrepreneur, accustomed to unpredictable and provocative statements on the social network, said: “And I buy Manchester United, you’re welcome”.
It was unclear whether the world’s richest businessman was serious regarding making a takeover bid.
Questioned by AFP, neither Tesla nor the management of the club, controlled by the Glazer family, responded immediately.
The English club, listed on the New York Stock Exchange for ten years, has a market capitalization of 2.08 billion dollars. The action which had closed stable Tuesday at 12.78 dollars (+0.08%) lost 2.11% in electronic trading following the close.
Although no shareholder holds a majority stake, Manchester United is controlled by the six children of American businessman Malcolm Glazer, who took over the company in 2005 before passing away in 2014.
The club’s management came under heavy protest from supporters in April last year when they wanted to take part in a breakaway European Super League plan that was eventually scrapped.
The Red Devils wanted, with 5 other English clubs, 3 Spanish and 3 Italian, to create a rival European competition of the Champions League, an initiative which had provoked strong political and sporting protests, but also strong reactions from the supporters of the clubs concerned.
Severely corrected last Saturday in Brentford (4-0), Manchester United is currently in an unworthy last place in the English Championship following two defeats in two matches, far behind a successful leading duo, made up of Arsenal and Manchester City, convincing winners.
As for Elon Musk, he recently sold nearly $7 billion worth of shares in his car group Tesla, while he is in the midst of a legal battle over his failed takeover project of the social network Twitter.