Every Arsenal fan nowadays is blaming Arsene Wenger for the faults of the club by failing to win a trophy (except a few FA Cups lol), but the fact is that Wenger has done extremely well with the funds he has been given by the owner to spend on players. The reason I am putting this post on is so you can see how Kroenke’s other sports teams (or Franchises as the Americans call them) have been performing while Kroenke has been the owner.
I found this synopsis on the Brisbane Roar website in Australia, written by Oscar Moore. Read and understand how Kroenke runs his other “franchises” with a slant on how it affects the Arsenal fans. You also have to use as a yeardstick that the with the rise in the share price since Kroenke took over Arsenal ten years ago has gone up in value by 300 million Pounds….
St Louis/ Los Angeles Rams
Kroenke first bought a stake in the Rams in 1995 and became the team’s full owner in 2010. While the turn of the millennium was a successful time for the Rams – winning a Super Bowl in 2000 and returning to the big game in 2002 – since then it has been a dire time to support the Rams.
In the years since their two Super Bowl appearances, the Rams have made just two playoff appearances and won a single postseason game. Their last taste of success came in 2004 and since then they have failed to post a single winning season.
The years since Kroenke took full ownership have been particularly bleak with the Rams becoming a laughing stock as they consistently post an underwhelming record. Sounding familiar Arsenal fans?
The final blow was dealt in 2015 when it became apparent the current season would be the team’s last in St Louis. Kroenke had decided to move the team to Los Angeles as the draw of a more lucrative market was too powerful, leaving thousands of loyal fans without a team.
Kroenke’s eventual relocation of the Rams perfectly demonstrates how he values profit over team success or the needs of fans. It does not bode well for Arsenal.
Denver Nuggets
Kroenke Sports and Entertainment took over the Nuggets in 2000 and although the NBA franchise is technically in his wife’s name, Kroenke’s fingerprints are all over the club. He inherited a struggling franchise who were rebuilding after a period of modest success in the mid nineties.
In 2003 the Nuggets hit the jackpot when they drafted Carmelo Anthony with the with the third pick in the NBA draft. Anthony was an immediate success and lead the Nuggets to seven straight playoff appearances, although in all but one of those appearances the Nuggets were defeated in the first round.
Sounds like Arsenal in the Champions league doesn’t it?
Despite the stellar play of Anthony, the Nuggets failed to surround him with enough talent to make a serious run at an NBA title, with ownership happy to milk the increased revenue of playoff basketball without breaking the bank salary wise.
Eventually Carmelo got sick of Denver and demanded a trade leaving the Nuggets in another period of rebuilding. They have a young and talented core but it remains to be seen if Kroenke invests in the team sufficiently for them to succeed.
For Arsenal fans there are eerie similarities to draw between the departure of Carmelo Anthony and the cavalcade of stars who left the club between 2011 and 2012.
Colorado Avalanche
I will admit that I don’t know anything about ice hockey so it is harder for me to judge Kroenke’s ownership of the team. The Avalanche won the Stanley Cup the year after Kroenke took over in 2000 but it is hard to imagine he had much to do with that if anything.
The foundations of that team would have been built before Kroenke took over.
Looking through the season by season records the Avalanche seem to be doing OK – making the playoffs reasonably consistently without threatening to win it all.
However, there have been accusations flying around that the Kroenkes – Josh (Stan’s son) is the chairman – have been absent owners of late focusing their time and energy into moving the Rams to LA.
During this period they seem to have put all the hockey decisions in the hands of GM Joe Sakic. Sakic is a franchise legend who played his entire 21 year NHL career with the Avalanche and Quebec Nordiques (where the franchise was based before it moved to Denver). However, recently his decision making has been questioned by fans who feel it may be time to change.
Sounds very familiar doesn’t it? Club legend left in complete control of team operations with little or no input from board level. Granted the situation hasn’t been raging on for as long as at Arsenal but there are definite similarities to be drawn.
Colorado Rapids
Kroenke purchased the MLS franchise in 2004 and in 2007 moved the stadium out of Denver to the suitably named suburb Commerce City. Could there be a more perfect destination for a team owned by silent Stan.
It’s not been all bad for the Rapids since Kroenke took over winning the MLS cup in 2010. However ,that has been the only taste of success. More often than not the Rapids have failed to qualify for the playoffs and have been mired in mid table mediocrity.
When you look at all the sports teams Kroenke owns together it paints a very clear picture of an owner who is interested in only one thing – money, money, money. Not a single one of his franchises have been associated with winning during his tenure and Arsenal have been exactly the same.
It seems slightly unfair that much of the fury is directed at Wenger as he is the public figurehead, while Kroenke remains behind the scenes with his fortune increasing by the day.
It is time for Wenger to go but Kroenke is the root of the problem. Wenger’s prolonged period in charge is merely a consequence of his ownership.
So is the decline of Arsenal Wenger’s fault? Or Kroenke’s?
Admin
You can’t blame him for the Rams relocating from St. Louis to LA. The Rams we’re in LA before St.loius and NFL teams can and DO relocate. The Raiders are moving from Oakland to Las Vegas next.
But after saying all this Kroenke HAS TO LEAVE ARSENAL…..with Wenger.
Admin. It is Kroenkes fault for keeping wenger as it is Kroenkes fault for not giving a shit about Arsenal (or any of his franchises). It is also the fault of those they let him in to our club which was done in an underhand way. He is A man whose only motive is profit and is happy with Arsene as he delivers what he is set out to do (very little in sporting success terms). His modus operandi is to gain maximum profit in minimum investment.
I have wanted Wenger out for some years now as he is no great tactician or man motivator but am well our fortunes cannot completely change until the scum that is Satan Kroenke and his banker chums on the board do one.
It is Kroenkes fault for keeping wenger as it is Kroenkes fault for not giving a sh£t about Arsenal (or any of his franchises). It is also the fault of those they let him in to our club which was done in an underhand way. He is A man whose only motive is profit and is happy with Arsene as he delivers what he is set out to do (very little in sporting success terms). His modus operandi is to gain maximum profit in minimum investment.
I have wanted Wenger out for some years now as he is no great tactician or man motivator but am well our fortunes cannot completely change until the scum that is Satan Kroenke and his banker chums on the board do one.
Agreed.
Thanks Admin for putting this article up. I think it is important for every Arsenal fan to know where the root of the problem starts.
Another thing that you all should know is that Usmanov may sell his shares because he has grown frustrated with Kroenke and buy into Everton. This would be diabolical for Arsenal. If Kroenke holds onto his shares, Arsenal will continue to be mediocre. It is as simple as that because at the end of the day, money is all that matters to Kroenke and he will suck the club dry.
Imagine Everton winning a PL before we win our next one.
TBH I get scared that Silent Stan will just hire a Wenger clone without help and I also do not think Wenger should pick his replacement, we need the best person for the job.
Kinda why I am hopeful about the rumors of a Sporting Director, this could get us someone who understands the sport and what criteria we need in a manager.
first of all i want to say its about time someone has realized what I’ve been saying for years about Kroenke,he is a business man not a sports fan.He doesn’t give a dam about arsenal or fans along as its profitable. Now to mr.Wenger, at some point i believe there will be a statue of him outside the stadium and deservingly so, when you look at the big 4-5 teams in england, top teams in spain, germany. you realize know other manger has done as much with so little in comparison, as wenger has at arsenal.Fact is to compete at highest level consistently you have to spend, and you have seen it time and time again arsenals lack of willingness to do so, we have a russian billionaire , who makes chelsea owner look like a regular joe, and wants to take control of arsenal and spend to compete but is left out in the cold by kroenke.For all the money mourinho has had as his disposal to buy players where ever he has been exception porto his best managerial job to date, what has he really done a few league titles no champions league titles a very poor return. That been said its time for wenger to go things have run its course. He deserves to leave on his terms but the board has to let it be known to him behind the scenes that this is it. arsenal as a organization has to figure out what they want to be going forward either they want arsenal to be up there with the top teams in the world fighting for EPL and champions league glory not also rans, or are they satisfy with what we are and have been a top 4 in EPL get out of group stage in champions league and thats about it. Beautiful team to watch when on but no substance. And they need to be honest with the fans about this,we are tired of the lip service about how we came close to signing this player and that player, close only counts in hand grenades. ARSENAL 4EVER.
I doubt that Kroenke is telling Wenger to be a delusional loser lol and it’s not as if Wenger wasn’t given £100 million to spend last summer. Infact it was reported that there was more money available for Wenger if needed but no, Wenger believed that he had more than enough stability, focus and cohesion in his World class squad.
Top marks for getting past the word nugget 😀
Wenger may have been given £100mil but what does that really get you in this market? Funnily enough this amount is roughly what we make from tickets over the whole season… Same as our spending has been for the past few years!
Wenger had more money to spend did he?
I doubt this very much, Silent Stan has a self sustaining model, we can only spend what we make and Silent Stan plays things safe and boring… Yes we have cash reserves but funnily enough have you seen roughly how much that is and how much our outstanding debt is? When media and PR people talk about debt, they minus what is in the bank and then it looks like we have next to no debt…
Seriously dude, downthumb this if you want but why not look into more than headlines?
I believe the decline started when Dein left and left the old board to get greedy and have designs of increasing their share prices for a nice payday.
Silent Stan has done nothing to change this stance, he bought the club as an investment and he is now using that to invest in other stuff, doing good for himself but screwing everyone over in the process.
If Silent Stan wants to sit back and let others do the work then he needs to hire professionals who can get the job done, not rely on a manager who has had piling duties and failing to do any of them well now, I do hope that because we are a global brand… He cares enough to get the best in.
Asking Wenger to pick his replacement might not get us the best…
I know it is hope but I am a supporter, I do want to see the club we love do well, I will be happy to praise Silent Stan if he started to show passion for the sport! He has to make the decision though. He has final say. The buck stops at him, not the stop before.
Dein sold his shares to Usmanov, the rest of the board to Kroenke. Dein was the best decision maker the club had at the time and the club hasn’t been the same since he left.
I got fooled at the time and I do feel somewhat bitter about it now.
It was more upsetting when I read about Usmanov wanting to loan us the debt interest free and over a longer duration so we can keep spending and investing.
Silent Stann blocks Usmanov from the board as well…
It is a shame.
I can not hate Wenger when I see more trouble from the board, I know there are better managers than Wenger but until we get a board that wants to win and see us do well then I do not think the manager will matter.
Yeah it is a difficult pill to swallow but unfortunately the board got us in this mess and our only hope as fans is if Kroenke sells his shares.
As far as Wenger. I lost my faith in him when he sold Van Persie to Man U and I started to despise him when he turned his back on a Fabregas return.
l havnt read this yet but i can tell you i dont care what he does or Wenger or anyone else who doesnt play in our team everyweek .
the way some of them have given up in games make me sick the money they get its just a joke and i know i dont see wverything going on pitch side but i can see other teams players fighting like there lifes depend on it and when i see our team give up so easy im just so disappointed.
but at least theres only 1 way we shall go and its up cant get any lower.
Wenger Is the problem. countries change presidents unless dictators, businesses fired managers when not delivering results at the end of fiscal year but In Arsenal nothing happens. Yes, Kroenke has very average knowledge of how to run a sport team but like or not he gave Wenger 100 millions last year to be competitive and challenge for the eluded title last year. What Wenger got us? 6th or 7th place this year. for the last 5 transfer windows apart from Ozil and Alexis. Mr wenger always comes with the statement that there is nobody outside there better than the current bunch an only to get emergency buying like Mustafi when Per was meant to miss the whole season but If people look objective as the transfers made in the last years . we got kallstrom , yaya SAnogo and Takuma Assano last year who he loaned to Germany. Does he show the fans he has ambitions to win the EPL? being able to get at least into the semis of the UCL? the entire scout team should be changed so is the manager. it is not Kroenke who buy them. Is Giroud , Kos and LeCoq the most important players in Arsenal FC? he offered them contract extensions 3 months ago but we are almost end of season and players like Ozil, Alexis and Ox has not been sorted who we should build the team around them comes summer. the media to divert the failures of the board and wenger stated we got 200 millions to spend in summer overhaul..every season they promise and promise and deceive us all. Show of intent would it be getting Abumayang / lacazzete or Mbappe as CF ( wellbeck , theo and Og are better according to wenger ) , carvalho / bakayoko or , Kante ( we got LeCoq ) a very good LB rodirguez from wolsburg or the fella from shaalcke.. ( WE got gibbs ) 3 key players needed for the last 5 years but comes transfer deadline and nothng as usual..Are you Pro Wenger’s still think he is the man to turn things around? NOPE, is not Kroenke’s fault ( i’m not PRO kroenke just see football objective ) change is needed PERIOD. FAILURE TO DELIVER WOULD NOT BE TOLERATED IN ANY BIG CLUB JUST ARSENAL.
That’s where you are getting it wrong my friend…you seem dead sure what Wenger”s objectives are and that he is not delivering on them. I think his objectives as given by the board and owner are to make as much profit as possible from the club. How he does it whether by making last minute panick buys on tranfer deadline day or losing big games by margins of 6,8 or 10 is upto him. That is why a player will never be allowed to rundown his contract and wil be sold to a direct rival if only just to avoid losing money. Infact mark my words, if Sanchez and Ozil don’t agree new contracts this summer they will be sold so fast to whoever shows up at the Emirates door with money their heads won’t stop spinning. My guess? Sanchez will end up at mancity or chelsea, Ozil man utd or psg.
hahahah,100 million in todays football what is that? 1 striker!!!! try giving that amount to man city or man u. and as arsenal fans we think we are are a big club and i agree we should be, but in reality we are not, and thats no ones fault but the person writing the cheques. A lot of you were the same ones giving wenger accolades when we were the invincibles. and as far as the person who said wenger turned his back on ces, its ces who turned his back on arsenal wenger saw something in him when barca didn’t. And please he’s not in ozil class, even though oil has not been up to par.
Nice thesis but Wenger has been given funds. He has misspent and poorly coached.
Blame Wenger without looking at the FACTS?
Welbroke is the obvious example as Wenger openly said he never wanted to buy him, only get him on loan. Kinda became broke for us and turned into a waste of money which could have been put towards a top CF like Lacazette…
You can look at other signings and see that they was bargain versions of what Wenger wanted and all of those are questionable as we may not have got them if we had someone like Dein doing the transfers, someone who knows investing to start with can save money later on when having to replace the junk bought.
But hey, you jump on the bandwagon of blaming Wenger without thinking.
As much as i HATE Kroenke, Wenger did spend around £100 last summer
It wasn’t well spent
Wenger didnt get a Top DM and Top forward
Holding was an excellent purchase for £5 mil. I admit that. Better than £16 mil on Chambers.
Mustafi was a good signing. I was surprised Wenger spent over £30 mil on defender
Jury is still out on Xhaka. So far he isnt worth £35 mil and he isnt a defensive midfielder. Hopefully he will improve
Lucas wasnt a good buy in the sense that it was a gamble as he is 29 and only had one good season. He was hardly played and wasnt the Top forward we needed as we already have Giroud, Welbeck, Walcott
Wenger either doesnt spend much on what we need or spends a lot unwisely
My dream for this summer
1. Wenger out
2. Sell Ramsey, Sanogo, Debuchy, Jenks
3. Keep Alexis, Ozil and Bellerin
4. Buy Top forward (Lacazette, Aubemeyang, Dybala, Greizmann)
5. Buy a Top DM (like Krychowiak)
6. Reliable CB (like van dijk)
7. CM (like Isco)
8. Very good LB and backup RB
Well, well, well … we’re finally starting to realize that everything is not as dry cut as it seems. I’ve been saying it for years now – Do you think if Wenger wasn’t doing his job he’d still be Arsenal’s manager? Silent Stan is the biggest scrooge I know so there’s no way in hell he’d be paying someone 8mil (pounds) a year for not doing their job. And when you treat a football club (or any sporting franchise) for that matter as business, then all you care about is making more money. It’s always been about making profit for the owner and board members. No one cares about the fans and winning trophies. “Get me top 4, make some extra cash by playing in CL, sell a couple of players, balance the books, and make sure we come out on top” – those were the only objectives for Arsenal/Wenger when Kroenke took over. Nothing… I repeat NOTHING will change whether Wenger stays or goes. They’ll just get another Yes Man who will be tasked with the same goals. Until then, I leave you with these thoughts…
Wenger is managing the club as instructed by Kroenke thereby making Kroenke the problem.
Its a shame this has happened to our greatly historical club, the decline will only stop with new ownership, its doubtful Kroenke will change his way which means cut him off financially, don’t buy tickets or merchandise or pay for anything that brings in the club money.
All Kroenke has to do is take his entire effin family on a ride in one of his private jets and burn in a blaze of glory. The world would be a much better place without Satan K and his spawn. I pray to dear lord that scenario happens in my lifetime. I would celebrate as if it’s the best Christmas ever.
Not cool Nesby.
Kroenke may focus on the money, but I doubt very much that he tells Wenger who to buy or how to play. Whilst I dont expect Kroenke to push Wenger out, I dont think he will care much who runs Arsenal in the future or how they play, provided he continues to make money.
As such, whilst I would prefer an owner who was more committed to the success of the club, I blame Wenger for not knowing when it is time to quit, all the poor transfer dealings, the dead wood in the squad, attitude issues, tactical problems, injury problems and the like. One poor season can be bad luck, but year after year is bad management. Past success should not hide or excuse current failings.
And no I dont excuse the players either, but their mental state/motivation is part of Wengers job, as is getting rid of players who cant cope with the job.
Wenger has ensured he is part of everything that goes on at Arsenal, and no significant change will happen while he remains in charge.
100m.can only get u 1 world class player
I live in St. Louis and know full well how Kroenke likes to screw people. I am also a Gateway Gooner, so it’s doubly hard to deal with Kroenke as owner of the American Football team I grew to love and Arsenal. He is and has always been about making money. Let’s not forget he made the bulk of his money by developing and selling land to his wife’s family company Walmart. Unlike other NFL owners, Stan never interacted with Rams fans in St. Louis, He’d show up, watch a game or two throughout the season, but never said a word to the media or fans. Sadly, he’s treated my beloved Arsenal the same way. He won’t change because he only cares to have mediocre teams who contribute to the company bottom line.
There needs to be change in ownership, board and management in order to push Arsenal to the next level. I love Arsene and all the great things he’s done for this club. I’ve struggled with whether I want him to go or stay. Honestly, I don’t know that things will change if he does leave because you will still be left with the same owner and board.
How it turned out is surprising considering that a group of shareholders who collectively wanted the best for Arsenal squabbled so badly over Arsenal’s progression (Dein wanting to move Arsenal to Wembley, and initially bringing in Kroenke, then distrusting him and switching to Usmanov, Fiszman wanting to remain in Islington, and distrusting Dein’s motives in switching from Kroenke to Usmanov, thinking he wanted to be in control of Arsenal) that the worst possible outcome of Fiszman selling his shares to Kroenke and advising everyone apart from Dein to do the same to prevent the move to Wembley and Dein takeover, happened. He would probably be turning in his grave now.
How it turned out is surprising considering that a group of shareholders who collectively wanted the best for Arsenal squabbled so badly over Arsenal’s progression (Dein wanting to move Arsenal to Wembley, and initially bringing in Kroenke, then distrusting him and switching to Usmanov, Fiszman wanting to remain in Islington, and distrusting Dein’s motives in switching from Kroenke to Usmanov, thinking he wanted to be in control of Arsenal) that the worst possible outcome of Fiszman selling his shares to Kroenke and advising everyone apart from Dein to do the same to prevent the move to Wembley and Dein takeover, happened. He would probably be turning in his grave now.
There is no way Kronke will be shifted from Arsenal.
We are his best performing team out of all of the others he ‘owns’.
He has not ditched a single one of them and so will not be leaving us.
Take a look at the figures in a really interesting article on Le Grove and you will see what I mean. Looks like we are doomed to a new life of medeocrsty.
What we desperately need is Dangote’s oil refinery business to become a massive success, that massive that he’d be willing to pay the slimy yank whatever he asks for his shares of the club.
There is no hope for Arsenal as long as there is a living Kroenke walking the Earth, I’m not kidding at all. We won’t see Arsenal captain lift an EPL trophy ever, as long as the offspring of Satan has it’s claws in our dear club. And I’m talking decades and decades, as Satan K’s dear son Josh is far from old, and something tells me that his offspring will continue taking a dump all over the club as well.
Is there anyone who thinks Kroenke could name every player in the squad? Is there anyone who thinks Kroenke calls Wenger saying “Arsene I know we are doing pretty good in 3rd place but could you please remove Sanchez from the central striker spot, bring back Giroud, play Ramsey anywhere in the team and make sure we do a bit of naive defending? And if that doesn’t work Arsene ust switch to a back 3, play Holding and as soon as he shows he brings stability bench him. If you don’t do that you are fired”?
Kroenke might be to blame for not being in it to win it and for leaving Wenger in charge despite his obviously failing of evolving with the game. But Wenger is the one who selects the team, manages the team, motivates the team, and determines the system we play and our training sessions to make sure the players know what to do on game day.
It would be great if Kroenke sells to Usmanov but that doesn’t mean improvement is not possible if we bring in a modern manager. The chance that Kroenke sells is a lot slimmer than that he brings in a new manager IMO. Any improvement is welcome and a new manager is an easy change. What do we have to lose at this stage? CL football? It is out the door? Reputation/image? We are the laughing stock of not only the PL but also Europe? We have nothing to lose by bringing in Koeman, Simeoni, an Allegri.
Screw the blame game. I am willing to forgive Kroenke for his past mistakes and respect him if he is able to do the right thing and sack Wenger ASAP. Don’t talk about letting his contract run out, sack him to send a clear message that Wenger is a failure, his ways have failed and we need to make a clean cut and erase Wenger from our memories going forward. Bah bah bah Kroenke didn’t invest enough money, poor Wenger has done extremely well with the funds he has been given…… what excuse does Wenger have for finishing below Spurs and Liverpool who have spent far less money? For finishing below Leicester last season? Don’t tell me we should drive Kroenke out and support Usmanov cause Usmanov is pro Wenger too…. I don’t see how having Usmanov as owner will be any different.
There are very few managers in football or any sport for that matter, who have coached for over 20 years who haven’t seen the game pass them by or their message get stale after so long. Arsene will go down as one of the greatest managers in history, but for all his success, at 67, the game is passing him by.
What we see now is how lucky Stan Kroenke was to have Arsene Wenger. For decades he’s been lucky to have a great manager who has kept his team a “super club” despite having significantly less budget to work with. Now with Arsene no longer able to out-coach his competitors, we see how little structure there is at Arsenal & how little Kroenke has done on the footballing side.
Kroenke is your classic american owner. He builds a nice stadium expecting match-day revenues to keep his team relevant. He takes the Arsenal badge for granted. But there is so much more when it comes to operating a global football club. For anyone who thinks Kroenke has done a good job.. just compare Arsenal’s sponsorship deals to other top club teams around the world. Personally, I don’t think he’s done anything to actually earn how much revenue Arsenal make. He got lucky hiring one of the greatest managers of all time & has rode his back ever since. He is lucky to be in the London market. And given the loan he took out to finance his LA Rams, the largest loan for a sports franchise ever, there is no chance he sinks personal capital into buying world-class players in the next 10 years.
As long as Kroenke is owner of Arsenal, they will continue to slip into mediocrity. Our only hope as gunners fans, is that eventually this mediocrity catches up to them & their growth starts to lag behind more clubs in Europe. Other than that, Arsenal fans should ready themselves for more of the same.