Latest reports suggest that Arsenal football club have agreed to be taken over by Stan Kroenke, which would value the club at £731 million ($1.2 billion).
The American billionaire, who owns close to 30% of the clubs shares, is said to have offered Arsenal shareholders £11,750 per share after already securing 16.1 and 15.9% from Danny Fiszman and Nina Bracewell-Smith respectively. This means Kroenke now controls 62.89% of Arsenal. The American tycoon said:
‘Arsenal is a fantastic club with a special history and tradition and a wonderful manager in Arsene Wenger. We intend to build on this rich heritage and take the club to new success.’
Kroenke, who already owns major sports franchises in the United States, still has to make an offer for the remaining shares in the club which are held by Alisher Usmanov.
Arsene Wenger welcomed the takeover. The Frenchman said:
‘I have worked with Stan Kroenke at board meetings over the past couple of years and I believe he has the best interests of Arsenal at heart. He understands the club’s heritage and traditions and our ambition to run the club in a way which protects our long term future.’
This news should be music to Arsenal fans ears. At least now the club has one owner and can finally compete with the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Manchester City during the forthcoming transfer window. I believe our new owner is investing for the good of the club as Wenger himself has stated, unlike the Glazer family over at Manchester United.
It seems Wenger has been given the green light to stay on despite his failure to win a trophy for what may be 6 years after the conclusion of this season. However, I think the Arsenal boss will be forced to buy more players during the summer window in order to build a star-studded team. It’s still early, but I believe this takeover is a step in the right direction for the Gunners.
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Kroenke will not invest heavily in buying players you idiot. Wenger is a pro-Kroenke and believed in youth development. Even Wenger have 100 million pounds, he will not buy a 20 millions player.
He will invest money mate…he’s a billionaire, hence he’s got a few bob in his back pocket. Maybe not star-studded players, but certainly better than Bendtner, Diaby and Denilson. I look forward to the takeover
dats great man,let him come and we compete in both money n flare
I think it is good that he has come in and invested in the club. The good thing is he owns many sports franchises in America, but more importantly he knows about Arsenal and its history. I don’t think though he will invest large amounts of money into club. He is a business man and if the club is making money then he is happy. I hope I am proven wrong though but I seriously doubt it.
Well, we all got our views about him. Its all speculation. Lets just see what happens in the summer.