Arsenal's Premier League title win, their first in 22 years, also marked the latest trophy for American billionaire Stan Kroenke's international stable of sports teams. Through his Denver-based Kroenke Sports & Entertainment holding company, the 78-year-old real estate mogul owns professional football, basketball, hockey, soccer and lacrosse franchises that have each won at least one championship since he bought them.
Arsenal's success came after Kroenke became a minority owner in 2007, steadily increasing his share before buying out rival co-owner and Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov in a 2018 deal that valued the team at about $2.3 billion. Independent sports business writer Joe Pompliano declared on X that as a sports investor, Kroenke "is on a generational run right now."
Fan Backlash and Protests
However, the years leading up to Arsenal's championship were marked by intense anger from Gunners fans toward Kroenke. In 2019, a protest outside Emirates Stadium complained that he was treating Arsenal as an "investment vehicle." In 2021, over 1,000 fans gathered for a "Kroenke out" demonstration sparked by his role in failed European Super League efforts.
Kroenke's Wealth and Land Holdings
Kroenke is the world's 114th richest person, with a personal fortune estimated at $22.2 billion, nearly triple his 2021 net worth of $8.2 billion, according to Forbes. Last year, he became America's largest landowner with the purchase of 937,000 acres of ranchland in New Mexico, bringing his total portfolio to an estimated 2.7 million acres. His Kroenke Vineyards produce wines from two estates in California's Santa Barbara region. His wife, Ann Walton Kroenke, is a billionaire in her own right as daughter of Walmart co-founder James "Bud" Walton, with a net worth of $15 billion.
Sports Empire
On Wednesday night, Kroenke's Colorado Avalanche, winners of hockey's Stanley Cup in 2001 and 2022, faced the Las Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of the NHL Central Division conference finals, losing 4-2 but remaining a favorite to win the Cup again. Kroenke bought the Avalanche in 2000 as part of a reported $450 million package for the Denver Nuggets and Pepsi Center (now Ball Arena). The Nuggets won the NBA championship in 2023. His Colorado Rapids won the 2010 MLS Cup, and the Colorado Mammoth won the National Lacrosse League championship in 2006 and 2022.
St. Louis Controversy
Despite his low profile, earning the nickname "Silent Stan," the Missouri native is widely reviled in St. Louis. He helped relocate the Los Angeles Rams football team from St. Louis in 1995 after becoming a 40 percent co-owner. The St. Louis Rams won the 2000 Super Bowl, and Kroenke bought the remaining 60 percent majority share for $750 million in 2008. But he moved the Rams back to Los Angeles in 2016 after clashing with St. Louis officials over his demand for more than $700 million in stadium upgrades. St. Louis fans were furious, with online headlines calling him "The Most Hated Man in Missouri" and saying "F*** You, Stan Kroenke." St. Louis native Andy Cohen gave him a double middle-finger salute on his Bravo! talk show. In 2021, YouTube’s STL Sport Central posted a video titled "Stan Kroenke is a Liar," featuring a clip of him promising success in St. Louis. Last year, ESPN reported that fans attending United Football League games in St. Louis wore T-shirts and waved signs referencing the Rams owner, with one fan saying, "It's a community experience with a shared hatred of Stan Kroenke."
Defense and Recent Success
In a 2016 interview, Kroenke defended the move, saying, "There's the emotional argument and then there's rational. Rationally, unless you argue you should make a massive donation, it doesn't make any sense." He later built the $5.5 billion SoFi Stadium complex in Inglewood, California, on land he quietly bought. In 2022, the Rams won the Super Bowl at SoFi, defeating the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. American former soccer player Tim Howard said on SiriusXM that Kroenke, his son Josh, and manager Mikel Arteta deserved credit for Arsenal's title, stating, "I give the Kroenke family a lot of credit because it's in vogue to get rid of managers. The idea is to hire a really good manager and get out of the way."
