Stablecoin issuer Tether’s dreams of a complete takeover of Italian football club Juventus appear to have been dashed.
The board of majority shareholder Exor unanimously rejected Tether’s binding, all-cash offer to buy the company’s 65.4% stake in Juventus, saying in a press release Saturday that it had “no intention of selling any of its shares in Juventus to any third party, including but not limited to El Salvador-based Tether.”
Tether publicly announced its takeover bid for Exor – the holding company controlled by Italy’s Agnelli family, whose multi-industry business dynasty includes automaker Fiat – yesterday, saying the company had “deep admiration and respect” for the soccer club and planned to invest an additional $1 billion in its growth if the offer was accepted. Tether already has a 10% stake in the club, but has long expressed its desire to take a more active role in the club.
A Tether spokesperson did not immediately respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment.
Juventus faces constant financial challenges, posting recurring losses and requiring repeated capital injections, which have totaled more than 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) over the past seven years.
In its press release, Exor called Tether’s offer “unsolicited” and reiterated the Agnelli family’s continued commitment to the team’s success.
“Juventus is a historic and successful club, of which Exor and the Agnelli family have been stable and proud shareholders for over a century, and they remain fully committed to the club, supporting its new management team in executing a clear strategy aimed at achieving strong results on and off the pitch,” the press release said.
Neither Juventus nor Exor immediately responded to CoinDesk’s request for comment.
The price of a token linked to the football club, surged more than 32% in the last 24 hours after the stablecoin giant revealed it was willing to acquire the club. At the time of writing, he does not yet appear to have reacted to Exor’s announcement.
The stablecoin issuer is currently Juventus’ second-largest shareholder with an 11.53% stake in the club, behind Exor. Juventus shares fell 0.9% during Friday’s trading session to 2.194 euros ($2.58). The club’s total market capitalization is around $988 million.
