Kia Joorabchian reveals he missed opportunity to buy stake in Arsenal after Invincibles season

Arsenal were estimated to be worth $3.4 billion by Forbes in 2023/24

Joorabchian, a prominent figure in football since the 2000s, was involved in the deal that saw Argentinian internationals Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano move to West Ham in 2006, and is the director of global football management company Sports Invest UK.

Joorabchian has also been heavily involved in horse racing since 2003, and fronts Amo Racing.

From blockbuster football signings to ambitious moves in the racing world, the Paddock team chatted through his approach, his investments, and how he handles life as a disruptor in the industry.

“Granada had a share of Arsenal that they were selling at the time, David Dein and Danny Fiszman, the majority owner who passed away, were pushing me to go and buy this small stake of Arsenal.

“I went back to the board and they said: “Our 400m [overall] valuation is way too much”. That was 2005.”

The Paddock is a show hosted by Oli Bell, with weekly episodes with the best tips, news, talking points and special guests from the world of horse racing. Catch The Paddock on YouTube, or listen on podcast – wherever you get your podcasts.

“Arsenal obviously would be hard to buy now, because it’s owned by the Kroenke’s and they’ve crated one of the best sports franchises in the world with the LA Rams, a basketball team and an MLS team.”

With the Paddock panel shocked at the riches Joorabchian seemingly missed out on, he went on to predict how much Arsenal would be worth now.

Arsenal were estimated to be worth $3.4 billion by Forbes in 2023/24.

“With Man Utd trading at roughly $6-6.5bn, Arsenal should trade somewhere in the $4bn region. But I’m an Arsenal fan so I’m a little bit biased!

“To be honest, at the time, my focus was media and sports, and sports was really something that we saw had a huge growth potential, it’s just that at that time people were not really concentrating on sports, they were looking at it more like a rich man’s toy, rather than a really professional business.”

The Paddock is a show hosted by Oli Bell, with weekly episodes with the best tips, news, talking points and special guests from the world of horse racing. Catch The Paddock on YouTube, or listen on podcast – wherever you get your podcasts.