Malcolm Glazer and Manchester United, Tom Hicks and Liverpool, Randy Lerner and Aston Villa, now Stan Kroenke and Arsenal.
It seems inevitable now that Kroenke will take a controlling stake in Arsenal FC. With the news today that Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood has given his blessing, or at least be willing, to let Kroenke take ownership of the club.
If Kroenke chooses to move forward in purchasing the controlling stake, it would create a landscape in the EPL where 4 of the top 6 clubs are owned by Americans. It sounds promising, American interest in the sport of soccer, but that’s just the surface. I have very mixed feelings about this issue. On one hand, it shows that American investors are willing to look to the sport as a viable means of profit and success. It starts with the ownership, which will eventually lead to corporations pouring money into the soccer advertising world. It may sound negative, but money is what makes the world go round, and that statement rings true in soccer. So on the one hand we have more and more American interest in the sport of soccer, more and more American dollars being poured into soccer and that can only be a good thing.
A good thing, yes, but what of Major League Soccer - the very league that is our backyard, that is us among us on American soil. I would love to see a Randy Lerner or Malcolm Glazer show such interest in MLS, and be willing to back that interest with their money and influence. Imagine the big four billionaires of Lerner, Glazer, Hicks, and Kroenke with ownership stake in MLS teams. I have a hard time believing the mainstream media would be able to practically shun soccer like it does today. These men would want their investments broadcast to the masses, they would have the clout to put pressure on the sports media executives to aid in the efforts of growing a sport.
So I say to the billionaire soccer investors from America: I am excited for your continued interest and contribution to soccer, but don’t forget that American soccer needs your money and power too, and everyone knows that those who get in at the beginning are in the position to reap the greatest rewards.
MEG
Posted on 15th May, 2008
What you’re saying here makes so much sense. I hope that the American investors in England’s soccer learn something and bring it back to the US. Their influence and their money would go a long way toward moving the sport forward in this country!
Offside
Posted on 15th May, 2008
Couldn’t agree more. Lerner, Glazer, Hicks and Kroenke will get an immediate return on investment. If and when they invest in MLS it will be some time before they make the kind of money the EPL will make them. I can only hope that if these guys truly love the sport they will use their profits to buy into MLS and build the League.
col8
Posted on 24th May, 2008
The thing is we dont want Randy Lerner to leave Aston Villa.
As a “New” Chairman in the Premier League I think a lot of other Chairmen would do well to look at what and more Importantly he has endeared him-self to the Club.
He has embrace the tradition of the club, shown great respect to the supporters and not not tried to blindly bullship them to death with promises of millions of Dollar signs.
In General Charles Krulak he has the perfect foil for dealing with the supporters face to face. “The General” as he has become affectionatly know by the supporters has been pressing the flesh and speaking to supporters face to face about issues (Important to them) Changes have been made at the club at the request of the supporters, before Randy Lerner and “The General” turned up in the Premiership this was I think unheard of. The other thing they have done is show faith in the manager and leave him to get on with it, I have to say much as the Glaziers did at Manchester United.
The big difference is Randy Lerner did not put Aston Villa into millions of pounds of debt to buy the club and support the manager in the transfer market.
I would be happy to see Randy Lerner buy a football team in the MSL but not in my lifetime.
col8
Posted on 24th May, 2008
Do comments have to be vetted before been published?
Greg
Posted on 26th May, 2008
Hi Col8- You’re obviously a true Villa fan, and I am glad to hear you like what Lerner has done.
In response, with the current landscape, I don’t think there would be anything to hold Lerner back from buying an MLS team, or at least investing in MLS as a whole. The current situation in MLS lets an entity be an owner of more than one club such as AEG (Anschultz Entertainment Group) Perhaps the English FA has guidelines about ownership that dictate what the rules are regarding this matter. If Lerner and/or the other American EPL owners can’t own a club in MLS, then I wouldn’t expect them to ditch their current teams, I wouldn’t want them to either, but I would hope they would put some pressure on American sports ownership groups to give MLS a shot.
Leave your Comment