Kroger’s $25 billion proposed takeover of rival Albertsons ultimately failed because two judges – one federal and the other from the state of Washington – didn’t buy the competitive vision the grocers were trying to sell,

Albertsons is giving up on its merger with Kroger a day after it was rejected in two courts and it is suing the chain, saying it didn’t do enough to secure regulatory approval of the $24.6B agreement.

Kroger’s KR proposed acquisition of Albertsons ACI was officially blocked this week after federal judges ruled that the merger would violate consumer protection laws and reduce competition. Following more than two years of scrutiny,