Arsenal Special: What Would A Stan Kroenke-Owned Arsenal Mean?

By Tim Collings

“Yes, it looks like that… touch wood,” said Arsene Wenger when it was pointed out that things are looking good for the Arsenal squad with the return of Sol Campbell and return to fitness of Cesc Fabregas and others.

He may well be reaching for more wood, and more good luck, if as expected Stan Kroenke succeeds in completing a take-over of the club in the next few weeks. Or he may reach for his phone to dial Madrid and discuss his possible availability if events in north London do not work to his satisfaction.

Kroenke, 62, known as ‘Silent Stanley’ by sports reporters in the United States who have followed his career of acquisition closely, is now only 17 shares away from acquiring 30 per cent of the shareholding, a threshold that would require him to make a formal takeover offer.

If it goes through, as long expected, it would enable him to add Arsenal to his other sports clubs – Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA), Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL) and Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer (MLS).

But, and rather distressingly for most Arsenal fans, it would mean also that the Gunners became the fourth English Premier League club to fall into American control – following Aston Villa, Liverpool and Manchester United into the land of dollars and obscure, often secret owners.

Given the current turbulence, both financial and football, that appears to be gripping events at Anfield and Old Trafford, most Gunners supporters should be excused if they associate ‘Silent Stanley’ more readily with the old ‘Silent but Deadly’ jokes.

It could, of course, work entirely the other way with Kroenke moving in and investing in the club and the team to establish an era of supremacy that will permit the fans to turn a blind eye to his monopolisation of the club’s revenue streams – the stadium, the marketing businesses and the growing digital media platform Arsenal Broadband Limited.

But, in truth, nobody knows. His influence is already being felt, however, with another American Tom Fox recent announced as the club’s new marketing director and following in the footsteps of Ivan Gazidis, recruited from Major League Soccer. It is impossible to ignore the feeling that the club is gradually being taken over by American methods and theories, even if the shares do not yet reflect American ownership.

So, how long before an American not only sits in the chairman’s chair, but also in the dugout?

It may sound an unlikely prospect, but who knows? It is more likely, realistically, that Kroenke will pay greater attention to taking control of the stadium, television, marketing and communications at the club, and the ticketing, than the playing squad. He can hardly claim to be an expert on football, after all.

In the United States, his three clubs have all followed the same model whereby he takes control of the stadium and intensifies its usage to generate more revenue for himself and his companies. He often does much the same with the regional sports network (named Altitude) that he uses to control media broadcasting, and ticketing (through TicketHorse). He squeezes the revenue tight.

According to a feature-article published in the International Herald-Tribune, written by Jere Longman, all of this clearly signals that “The club would be expected to become more aggressive under Kroenke’s stewardship.”

That could mean, in theory, that he may consider putting a roof over the Emirates to multiply the revenue opportunities; Longman reported that Kroenke did not let his Republic persuasions interfere in 2008 with his decision to rent out the Pepsi Center in Denver for the Democrats’ national convention for a reported $6.5 million (dollars) (£3.9m) and would almost certainly support brand expansion across Asia, the Middle East and the United States.

For Wenger, this would mean Arsenal embarking on money-spinning tours and other activities that are currently not favoured by him. And this prospect probably goes some way to explaining why the Frenchman has not yet shown great enthusiasm for extending his contract with Arsenal.

Wenger may well have phoned Alex Ferguson and Rafael Benitez for some tips on what to expect next…if the Kroenke takeover turns into reality. Whatever happens, an American takeover of Arsenal would signal a seismic change of culture for one of England’s greatest sporting institutions, but it remains to be seen if that translates into anything tangible on the pitch where the Gunners have led the way in fielding cosmopolitan teams.

For now, Gunners fans, watch this space… and keep any eye on the shares reports in the pink pages of the financial papers.

For more on Arsenal, please click here!