Molde Football Club

"When the offer came from Manchester United, Solskjær was sent to the cinema while Gjelsten and Røkke went with their private jet to meet manager Alex Ferguson. There was no sense in being humble. Pay 15 million kroner, or forget the whole deal, was the message to the big club. In Norway, this was an unheard-of price for a player they had given a fifth part for the year before. But Manchester bent and paid reluctantly. In Norway, Røkke and Gjelsten were celebrated as Molde's "rich uncles" and some fantastic negotiators who managed to get out a record sum. But the joy was somewhat short-lived, as Solskjær scored in his first game and became a favorite at Old Trafford. Two years later, he was valued at 100 million kroner. For once, the buyers made a significantly better deal than the two football idiots from Molde. But the sale taught Røkke one thing: If Solskjær could become a star in Manchester, then the difference between Molde Football Club and the British major team valued at several billion kroner on the London stock market was not so big. Drillos had taught Norway that we could measure up with the world's best national teams. It was just about leaving respect at home and thinking big. The same thing could happen with Molde."

"But Gjelsten was not only satisfied with the player trades becoming more professional, he wanted to streamline the entire Molde Football Club. The dream was a stock market listing. It was the start of a classic operation in Gjelsten & Røkke style: First, they injected 10 million into the newly founded Molde Fotball ASA. And when the club later invited others to buy shares for 50 million, the price per share quintupled. Thus, the "rich uncles" had already secured a very handsome return on their help to the city's pride."