Bernie Ecclestone is counting down the days until he can secure control of Arsenal in one of English football’s most astonishing takeover deals. In an exclusive interview with The Times, the Formula One impresario revealed that he would be “interested in buying the club today”, if it were on the market.

But his aspirations will have to wait for an agreement, signed by five Arsenal directors who control a crucial 45 per cent of the club’s share-holding, to expire. Their commitment is to resist any takeover attempt until next April. By then, though, the price could surpass the £790 million Malcolm Glazer paid for Manchester United.

Arsenal are valued at £432 million, while the 60,000-seat capacity at the new Emirates Stadium has catapulted match-day takings to £80 million a season. Some financial experts believe that the takeover price would soar if Ecclestone, whose fortune is valued at £2.2 billion, allowed himself to be drawn into a bidding battle with Stan Kroenke, the American sports magnate, who has made his intentions clear by spending £65 million for 12.2 per cent of the club.

Ecclestone prefers a “softly, softly” business strategy and will base any approach on his friendship with David Dein, the former director who walked out of the boardroom after an internal row about the club’s future. Ecclestone said yesterday: “It was David who mentioned it. The directors at Arsenal don’t want to sell and have signed a lockout agreement for a year, so we will have to wait and see what happens then. A lot can change in that time. I am still very interested. If I could buy Arsenal I would, but I would want control.”

Ecclestone’s determination to gain control may send shivers through the Arsenal boardroom, but his record as a benevolent dictator is remarkable. He transformed Formula One into a multibillion-pound industry that employs tens of thousands of people in Britain alone.

His alliance with Dein could mean that the former Arsenal director may be allowed to realise his dream to run the club that he is widely credited with having steered for two decades. Dein may have had the door slammed behind him when he left the Arsenal boardroom, but he would be welcomed back by many, not least Arsene Wenger, the manager, whom Dein brought to the North London club.

Ecclestone also offers a solution for fans desperate for their club to be kept out of foreign hands.

Ecclestone had been linked with a takeover of Queens Park Rangers in concert with Flavio Briatore, the principal at the Renault Formula One team and one of his closest allies. But he emphatically ruled himself out of the deal yesterday, saying that Briatore was acting alone. Instead, Ecclestone’s eyes are fixed on Arsenal and transforming the club into a mirror image of his huge Formula One empire.

Briatore’s appearance at QPR is more mysterious. The flamboyant Italian confirmed yesterday that he was in talks with the club and QPR are desperate for a buyer with cash. The Coca-Cola Championship club are staggering under the weight of a £10 million high-interest loan and have spent months trying to satisfy creditors. At one point this year they even faced a winding-up order from the St John Ambulance service over an unpaid bill of £18,000.

It is thought that Briatore would probably get the club at a price below the £30 million regularly quoted, because of the debt burden. But he would still be faced with financing a reconstruction plan capable of getting QPR back into the top flight for the first time in 11 years.

Briatore, who is thought to be worth about £70 million, is said to have pledged £10 million for transfers, but more would be needed and he is not in the wealth class of someone such as Ecclestone. However, he is one of the best connected men in Europe and could find backers easily to help to broker a quick takeover.