Sports Mogul Stan Kroenke In Line To Make More Major Moves
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Kroenke Owns Nuggets, Avalanche,
29.3% Stake In Arsenal, 40% Of Rams |
Kroenke Sports Enterprises Owner Stan Kroenke is a "savvy, if quiet, operator in the sports industry and beyond," and he "appears to be on the verge of more big moves," according to Christopher Tritto of the ST. LOUIS BUSINESS JOURNAL. Kroenke owns the Nuggets, Avalanche and a 29.3% stake in EPL club Arsenal, and with 40% ownership of the Rams, he has the right to "match any offer for the majority interest" in the franchise or require a new owner to "buy him out." NFL rules mandate that Kroenke would have to sell the Nuggets and Avalanche in order to "take the lead role with the Rams," unless he "could persuade his fellow owners to waive the rule." However, "by all accounts, basketball is Kroenke's true passion." SportsCorp President Marc Ganis said, "If that's your first love, it is hard to envision giving that up. But on a business level, the NFL is the league to be in, and Stan is a business man." Selling his Rams stake also "could be one way for Kroenke to raise funds for an Arsenal takeover." Kroenke's holdings also include the MLS Rapids, Pepsi Center, Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the NLL Mammoth, part of the AFL Colorado Crush, the Altitude Sports & Entertainment TV network, the "largest privately held cattle ranch in Canada, and two California wineries." Forbes estimated his assets at $3B, yet for "someone with such high-profile assets, Kroenke remains a strikingly elusive character." He "rarely speaks in public," and he "avoids the attention some other owners relish." P.A.T. Consulting President Phil Thomas, who formerly served as Rams VP/Sales & Marketing, said that Kroenke would "come to St. Louis for nearly every Rams game and shares a love of sports," but also "carries himself with measured reserve." Thomas: "His passions are his family, sports and business. He goes 100[%] with almost anything he is involved in" (ST. LOUIS BUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/24 issue).
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