LONDON, UK — Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke said Tuesday he is “100% committed” to the Premier League club and will not be selling it, amid interest from the founder of music streaming service Spotify.
Arsenal fans have called for Kroenke to leave after he was one of the instigators of the ill-fated European Super League project.
Daniel Ek, the Swedish businessman who founded Spotify and is an Arsenal supporter, has said on Twitter he would be “happy to throw my hat in the ring” if Kroenke wanted to sell and reportedly has enlisted the help of former Arsenal players Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira.
“In recent days we have noted media speculation regarding a potential takeover bid for Arsenal Football Club,” read a statement by Stan Kroenke and his son, Josh, on Tuesday.
“We remain 100% committed to Arsenal and are not selling any stake in the club. We have not received any offer and we will not entertain any offer.”
The Kroenkes said their ambition “remains to compete to win the biggest trophies in the game.”
“Our focus remains on improving our competitiveness on the pitch to achieve this,” they said.
Arsenal was one of 12 founding members of the Super League, along with English clubs Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham. All six withdrew their from the league last week, two days after it was officially announced.
More than 1,000 Arsenal fans protested outside Emirates Stadium on Friday, before the Premier League match against Everton, calling for Kroenke to quit. Liverpool and United fans have also voiced discontent with their American owners.
Arsenal is 10th in the 20-team Premier League.