Stan Kroenke Succeeds in Arsenal Takeover as Rival Alisher Usmanov Accepts £540m 'All-Cash' Offer
Arsenal majority shareholder Stan Kroenke is believed to have had an 'all-cash' offer to buy rival Alisher Usmanov out of the club accepted by the Russian as the American moves a step closer take full control of the Gunners.
Through 'Kroenke Sports Enterprises', billionaire Kroenke already owns around 67% of Arsenal shares and is looking to buy the 30% stake owned by Usmanov's 'Red and White Securities' that would see him hold over 97% of the total shares in the club.
Stan Kroenke wants to buy the rest of Arsenal he doesn’t own. Values Arsenal at £1.8 billion. pic.twitter.com/8QyKvEc7yx
— Ian Guider (@ianguider) August 7, 2018
Usmanov's stake accounts for 91% of the Gunners shares not currently owned by Kroenke. According to the Daily Telegraph, the proposal has already been accepted by Usmanov.
Kroenke will pay just over £29,000 for each share that he buys, valuing the whole club at around £1.8bn. It puts the overall size of the payout to Usmanov at an estimated £540m.
The Missouri-born 71-year-old, who first bought shares in Arsenal in 2007 and has proven to be incredibly unpopular with fans over the years, already owns various sports franchises in the United States, including Los Angeles Rams in the NFL and Denver Nuggets in the NBA.
Kroenke's personal net wealth is valued at around $8.1bn.
In May 2017, Kroenke rejected a £1bn takeover bid from Usmanov.