Private equity fights for Europe's highways

Global Infrastructure Partners and Brookfield Infrastructure offered to buy Italian road and airport operator Atlantia (Milan: ATL), in partnership with Spanish construction mogul and Real Madrid owner Florentino Pérez, but the controlling Benetton family may instead work with Blackstone to take the company private.

Why it matters: This could be the year's largest global acquisition, topping current leader Microsoft/Activision, and one of the all-time richest infrastructure deals. It also could become one of the nastiest, were Pérez and his PE pals to go hostile.