A petition calling for Arsenal's sponsors to call for Owner Stan Kroenke "to stand down" has nearly reached 50,000 signatures, "as pressure continues to grow" on the American billionaire following the launch of his hunting TV channel, according to Jack de Menezes of the London INDEPENDENT. Kroenke, 70, "
has faced ferocious criticism over the last 48 hours" after it was revealed that My Outdoor TV is owned by his company, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. MOTV "has caused particular outrage among Arsenal supporters." A petition has been set up calling on main sponsors Emirates, Puma and Vitality to "publicly condemn Kroenke's action and call for him to stand down" and set up a "meeting between the Arsenal board, key sponsors to the club, leading animal rights charities and most importantly representing members of the international fan bases regarding this situation." All three sponsors "have previously released statements about their position against animal cruelty," with Emirates reacting to criticism of its availability to transport animals to destinations where they are potentially at risk by "changing its regulations to prevent any trophy killings being allowed on its flights" (
INDEPENDENT, 8/2). In London, Tom Farmery reported U.K. Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn led the criticism of Kroenke's MOTV app, which for £7.60 ($10.06) a month offers "the Netflix of the hunting world." The BBC's "Have I Got News For You" program "waded into the debate on Twitter" before Arsenal fans roundly criticized Kroenke. The official HIGNFY Twitter account tweeted an "edited image of the Arsenal shirt showing the cannon on the Gunners badge firing at an upside Puma logo" (
DAILY MAIL, 8/2).
