Comparing Kroenke’s ownership of Arsenal and the LA Rams by KJ Virani
I’ve followed Kroenke’s ownership path of the LA Rams as I lived in St. Louis when he took a majority stake in the then St. Louis Rams. He put up a fight when Shahid Khan was attempting to purchase 100% stake ownership. I personally don’t see him selling Arsenal now or any time in the distant future. His track record tells me he is in it for the long haul.
Obviously it is extremely difficult comparing team building in the NFL to the EPL. However, there are some parallels. For example Kroenke and Rams GM Les Sneed have been the most aggressive team builders in the NFL over the last 4-5 years. The “All-In” philosophy Kroenke’s Rams have followed is extremely rare in the NFL where draft picks are worth more than gold. However Kroenkes Rams are changing the calculus NFL teams have followed forever.
Partially, the Rams have had no choice because in LA there are so many sports and entertainment options available. Rams are competing locally with LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Dodgers, USC football, etc. So building the best stadium and building a championship caliber team in a sports market where fans are extremely fickle is all about survival.
Translating the Rams team building to Arsenal may not be as simple. However, one has to remember it took a few years to set up the building blocks for an eventual Rams Championship starting with hiring the youngest head coach ever and building a team around his philosophy and personality.
I feel the same is in play at Arsenal. The only issue in the EPL is there isn’t as much team parity like the NFL – in the NFL “almost” every team (32 teams) has a chance to realistically matriculate to the Super Bowl at the beginning of the season. In the EPL there is a concentration of talent at the top and I think it takes a little bit longer to change fortunes.
Maybe I’m a bit naive but I’m hopeful Kroenke starts using the same “All-In” strategy with Arsenal by adding missing pieces in the next few windows to build the Arsenal we all deserve.
By the way, this is my first post here. I’ve been an adamant reader of the site and everyone’s comments forever now and am grateful for the wonderful community here. As an Arsenal fan who lives in the USA and a big NFL follower for all my life, I just wanted to drop my two cents on the matter.
KJ Virani
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