It’s Stan’s Arsenal now.
And that’s fantastic because Stan Kroenke is a smart billionaire who will reduce Wenger’s power in a way which benefits the club. To keep his job, Wenger will have to sign more Arshavins, not so many Songs and Meridas.
Monday’s sale of 8% by Danny Fiszman shows us that that Danny is no longer an obstacle to Stan’s ownership of the club.
Danny has told us his price £8,500. And Stan has told us his price : £8,500.
Stan will not pay more than £8,500 for a share because that is what he thinks Arsenal shares are worth.Spending £42.5 million is a big decision by Stan. He thinks AFC has a future. The way he does business is very sure-footed and strategic. And he paid cash. He didn’t borrow the £42.5 million. He paid cash, so keep that in mind for future reference.
Danny’s timing is good. He waited till Arsenal were in fourth place and sold before the season-ticket and box renewals come up. And he sold right at the end of the tax year, although I doubt if Danny pays capital gains tax. That’s why he lives in a village near Geneva.
Before Monday :
25.0% Usmanov
24.2% Fiszman
15.9% Lady Nina
12.4% Kroenke
Now:
25.0% Usmanov
20.5% Kroenke
16.1% Fiszman
15.9% Lady Nina
None of the big shareholders can now buy Lady Nina’s shares without having to launch a full bid, as they would exceed the 29.9% threshold.
So, at the moment, Kroenke can’t buy Bracewell-Smith’s shares, which had seemed logical.
Lady Nina has been shafted. She has been comprehensively shafted by Danny, who has engineered her exit and made sure Stan buys his shares, not hers.
Lady Nina told the Evening Standard: “It comes as a complete surprise to me. I haven’t spoken to the other shareholders today. I don’t know what it means for the future of the club.”
The exchange rate has worked for the American. Stan bought at $1.40 to the pound, rather than the $1.85 he previously had to pay, so his outlay is reduced.
Danny had exactly 15,000 shares. He has now sold 5,000 and he has 10,025 left. So it appears he has bought some shares recently without declaring them to the market.
The best long-term owner for Arsenal FC is Stan Kroenke. I’ve said that on ANR for two years and I was right. He may only have 20% but it’s his club now.
The Q&A with Ivan Gazidis confirms that. Yes, Stan wants continuity in the traditions of the club. Has there been any contact with Lady Nina since she left the board? It’s important that we have open dialogue with her. I’ll be reaching out to her.(But she didn’t want you as CEO, Ivan !) Will she sell to the current board? I’m sure there would be interest from among the current board.( i.e. my boss, Stan.)
And so on.
Clearly, former MD Keith Edelman was Danny’s man. But we now see that Ivan Gazidis is Stan’s man.
Naturally, they deny that the installation of Ivan was a pre-condition of Stan joining the board and of course Ivan did not start work until January 1st , long after the AGM where Stan was presented to shareholders.
In the future, keep in mind that Stan has never paid more than £8,000/£8,500 for his Arsenal shares. Secondly, he has never sold a share in any of his sports franchises. Silent Stanley of St Louis never talks, never signals his intentions, never goes yak-yak to the media like Tom Hicks. He accumulates and waits and always negotiates from a position of strength. Crucially, he accumulates at the right price. What Stan Kroenke has done in the past, he will do again. That’s all you know about Stan and all you need to know.
Oddly, Danny did not turn up at the last AGM to welcome his new American board member. There is no photo of Danny shaking hands with Stan. Millionaires don’t like billionaires because they love to be the richest man in the room.
The big irony is that it was David Dein who introduced Stan Kroenke to the club. Dein wanted Stan to buy the Arsenal. Now that is happening without his participation. And it’s happening two years after his sacking in April 2007.