Via the Daily Mail, Kroenke’s Premier League soccer club, Arsenal, has stopped paying Kroenke’s firm, Kroenke Sports Enterprises, 3 million pounds per year.
The issue first arose in late 2014, and KSE supposedly “waived” the fee in 2016, possibly/probably due to the controversy that emerged over it. Arsenal Supporters’ Trust recently wrote a letter to the Arsenal chairman Sir Chips Keswick questioning the legality of the payment.
Arsenal is publicly owned, with Kroenke holding roughly two thirds of the shares. The question became whether the payment amounted to a conflict of interest and/or a violation of any applicable laws and regulations.
The payment apparently was made in 2015. It apparently wasn’t made in 2016.
“More than 90% of our members were against this fee and believed that Stan Kroenke had not been able to justify it or explain what services he provided,” Arsenal Supporters Trust spokesman Tim Payton told the Daily Mail. “We considered it to be an inappropriate payment. This welcome outcome shows that supporters do have a voice and organised pressure can make a difference.”
Kroenke will never have a problem like this with his American sports ventures, which include the Rams, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, and the NBA’s Denver Nuggets. All are privately owned, with no shareholders and thus no mandatory public disclosure of payments like bloated consulting fees to Kroenke’s firm.
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