Shares of the English soccer membership Manchester United briefly rose by as a lot as 17% in premarket buying and selling Wednesday, after Tesla CEO Elon Musk jokingly tweeted that he would purchase the membership.

“Additionally, I am shopping for Manchester United ur welcome,” the billionaire wrote on Twitter. Hours later, Musk responded to a Twitter consumer asking if he was severe about shopping for the membership and clarified that it was a joke.

“No, it is a long-running joke on Twitter. I am not shopping for any sports activities groups,” he tweeted, earlier than including: “Though, if it had been any staff, it might be Man U. They had been my fav staff as a child.”

Manchester United shares, that are traded beneath the abbreviation MANU on the New York Inventory Change, had been up 3.68% in premarket buying and selling as of 4:30 a.m. ET, paring positive aspects after initially surging 17% after the tweet.

Based mostly on the membership’s most up-to-date inventory market valuation, shopping for Manchester United would have price Musk round $2 billion. Manchester United declined to touch upon the matter when contacted by CNBC.

Musk’s authentic tweet incited a wide-spread response and had gained over 573 000 likes and had been retweeted over 140 000 instances at time of writing. Manchester United followers reacted stunned, but hopeful, as many have criticized the present homeowners of the membership, the American Glazer household.

That is linked to the membership’s gradual begin to the present season of the English Premiere League, notching two losses in two video games, and the membership being a part of the failed try to arrange the European Tremendous League final yr.

Even earlier than Musk clarified that his supply to purchase Manchester United was a joke, some followers remained skeptical because the billionaire has a historical past of creating comparable jokes on-line.

In April of this yr, he tweeted that he would buy Coca-Cola “to place the cocaine again in,” a tweet he referred again to on Wednesday after clarifying that he wouldn’t purchase Manchester United.

“And I am not shopping for Coca-Cola to place the cocaine again in, regardless of the intense recognition of such a transfer,” Musk wrote.

The unique tweet about buying Coca-Cola got here simply days after Twitter’s board accepted Musk’s supply to purchase the social media firm for $44 billion.

Musk has since gone again on this deal simply 4 months after agreeing to it. Twitter is taking the billionaire to court docket over the dispute.