Kroenke excited by Arsenal
07 Apr 2007 - 12:55:54
Stan Kroenke was persuaded to buy into Arsenal after being impressed the way the Gunners are run, a spokesperson for the American billionaire has revealed.
Kroenke completed the purchase of a 9.9 per cent stake in the north London club just months after his American MLS side Colorado Rapids formed a marketing alliance with the Gunners.
Kroenke Sports Enterprise (KSE) also secured a 50 per cent stake in Arsenal Broadband Ltd for a combined total of £65million and the American sports magnate is "excited to be part of the Arsenal family".
"Mr Kroenke is a 9.9 per cent owner and is very excited about that," revealed KSE's chief marketing officer Paul Andrews.
"He is also very excited about the marketing alliance that we have.
"We are excited to be part of the Arsenal family. Arsenal is a great brand and we are excited to be part of that.
"It is fair to say that because we spent some time with the management and leadership of Arsenal over the course of the last year in getting our marketing partnership together, we became very fond of the brand and of the leadership.
"It is fair to say that made the investment decision even easier. We have a great relationship with them."
KSE have an extensive sports portfolio with interests in NFL franchise St Louis Rams, NBA basketball side Denver Nuggets and ice hockey's Colorado Avalanche.