Super-Rich Russian Backs off From Footie Team
After over 10 years of doing his utmost to gain control over Arsenal FC, Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov suddenly threw in the towel and sold his stake in the club for around US$710 million. Yes, ownership comes and goes, but why would Usmanov (who seemed so passionate about the club) hand over the reins to American sports investor Stan Kroenke, just like that?
Kroenke is well known for his lack of enthusiasm about spending money on Arsenal, and his endless devotion to former coach Arsene Wenger, who finally quit, after 14 years of not quite delivering as fans continued to keep their hopes up for the English Premier League title.
Arsenal fans are not impressed
As one of the top 100 richest people in the world, Alisher Usmanov has a personal fortune of around US$14.4 billion. He is even wealthier than fellow Russian oligarch and Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich. When somebody with this level of wealth stops supporting his favourite football club, it’s understandable that its supporters would be upset. And yet, can you blame the businessman?
It’s all about control (with some politics thrown in)
For several years the Russian was adamant that he would not sell his 30% shares in the club to Kroenke, a veteran sports investor. Without a functional relationship with the main shareholder, Usmanov did not have much influence over the club’s operations. With his parting comment, ‘Arsenal could be the best club in the world’, Usmanov made it clear what he thought of Kroenke’s ability to manage the club. There are also politics involved. Relations between Russia and the UK became strained after former Russian spy, Sergei Skripal was poisoned, and even Roman Abramovich has had a tough time renewing his UK visa. Either way, Usmanov has stepped down from Arsenal, and there are rumours that Jimmy Ratcliffe is trying to buy Chelsea from Abramovich. Could this be the start of the end of Russian money in British footie?