Alisher Usmanov, Arsenal’s second largest shareholder, has written to the club ahead of Thursday’s annual general meeting to seek a "detailed explanation" of a £3M ($4.65M) payment to the company of majority owner Stan Kroenke, according to Jeremy Wilson of the London TELEGRAPH. The payment has been made for a second consecutive year to Kroenke Sports and Entertainment and Usmanov, who owns 30% of Arsenal with business partner Farhad Moshiri, "wants further transparency about the rationale for the fee." Arsenal Chair Chips Keswick explained the payment last year with reference to "the wide range of services" provided by KSE. Usmanov, though, "has become sufficiently concerned by the prospect of an annual payment to take the unusual step of writing directly." It is understood that Kroenke and Usmanov, who are both featured on the Forbes list of the world's richest billionaires, "have still never spoken in the eight years since they began buying shares and vying for control of the club." There will also be a request on Thursday by fans for an "independent review of the club's transfer strategy following a summer that saw only one addition -- goalkeeper Petr Cech -- to the first-team squad." Arsenal was the only team in Europe "not to sign an outfield player," even though Manager Arsene Wenger had around £40M ($62M) available. One pre-submitted question asks, "If a club exists to benefit supporters, why sit on a cash pile that grows larger every year, and is disproportionately large compared to every other Premier League club?" (TELEGRAPH, 10/13). Wilson reported in a separate piece Arsenal's ticket prices are "the highest in England, even if they do also include cup games." The board will be asked whether, "in the light of the new broadcast deal and unprecedented levels of income," the club can commit to freezing or even reducing ticket prices in the period until '19. More detail will be sought on a £3M payment for services and advice to KSE. It will be pointed out that the Arsenal board "remains all male and white." Supporters and Arsenal Supporters' Trust members "will ask if there any plans to improve the diversity of the board." Well over 90% of Arsenal is now owned by two billionaire shareholders: Kroenke and Usmanov, who are featured above Chelsea Owner Roman Abramovich in the Forbes list of the world's richest people. The AST said that the number of shareholders in the club is at "the lowest level" since the company was formed in 1910 and "wants to know if the board will reaffirm its ongoing commitment to plurality of ownership and reassure the remaining shareholders of their importance to the club" (TELEGRAPH, 10/14).
