Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke accused of failing to meet supporters' groups
Arsenal's owner, Stan Kroenke, will this week come under pressure for reneging on promises made when he bought the club in a £731m deal, with supporters' groups accusing him of failing to schedule a single meeting with them in more than two years.
Before Thursday's annual meeting at the Emirates four of the main fan groups have written to Kroenke to remind him of the pledge he made in his formal offer document to make it "a priority to meet with supporters and fan groups in formal and informal settings".
The Arsenal Independent Supporters Association, the Arsenal Supporters Trust, the Black Scarf Movement and REDaction wrote a joint letter to Kroenke last month reiterating their belief that it was important to have a dialogue with the owner. Given the lack of response, a question has been tabled on the matter at the AGM.
In the formal offer document Kroenke made a firm commitment to meet fans and his failure to do so has prompted some to consider reporting him to the takeover panel for reneging on his commitment. "Mr Kroenke has made it a priority to meet with supporters and fan groups in formal and informal settings. He recognises that fans are at the heart of the club. Their opinions and involvement are important to him," said the clause, before his April 2011 takeover.
"Mr Kroenke fully expects himself, the Arsenal directors and club executives to continue to engage with supporters for the long-term health of the club"
Although there is more of a feelgood factor around the club following the signing of Mesut Özil and good early-season form, the four main Arsenal supporters groups remain deeply concerned about Kroenke's refusal to engage meaningfully in any way and his effective neutering of the Fanshare supporter-ownership scheme.
The AST, which administers the Fanshare initiative, is believed to be particularly exercised about the future of the scheme. When it was launched, it was hailed by Arsenal's chief executive, Ivan Gazidis, the then sports minister, Hugh Robertson, and others as a potential role model for other clubs to engage better with supporters.
It envisaged fans owning a small portion of the club and with it the power to hold it to account on important issues and scrutinise its finances. In June 2012 the Arsenal Fanshare board asked Kroenke to sanction the creation of 125 new shares, 0.2% of the overall number, specifically for the Fanshare scheme.
The scheme, they said, had reached a "critical point" given the illiquid market for Arsenal shares, most of which are owned by Kroenke or Alisher Usmanov's Red & White. But there is not believed to have been any progress since and a long list of willing investors have been unable to purchase a portion of a share.
A club spokesman refused to say if Arsenal were committed to the scheme, saying only there that there were "ongoing discussions" over its future.
Concern over the future of the much touted Fanshare model reflects broader concern that the debate around meaningful fan representation in club boardrooms has lost its way since it was placed firmly on the political agenda by all three main parties before the 2010 election.
The mood at the AGM should be substantially less febrile than last year, when a perfect storm of lack of success on the pitch and concerns off it, over ambition and finances, prompted a hail of criticism.
Peter Hill-Wood, who stepped down as Arsenal's chairman earlier this year and handed the job to Sir Chips Keswick, was criticised for airily dismissing the concerns of supporters as the "same lot" and Arsène Wenger's insistence that reaching the Champions League counted as a "trophy" invited derision.
In a recent round of interviews Kroenke, previously criticised for his lack of profile, espoused his love for Arsenal and his support for Wenger, saying that he spent 30 to 40 days a year in London. Arsenal's majority owner also said his son, Josh, had become a huge Gooner and said he listened to fans. But the official fan groups say their relationship with him has been non-existent since he completed his takeover and there remain too many question marks over his long-term intentions.
An Arsenal spokesman said that they engaged with fans more than any other big club and that Kroenke delegated the task to his executives. "It's a well known factthat as a club we engage with our supporters more than any other major club. There are regular meetings with the chief executive and senior executives and ongoing dialogue at all levels," he said.
http://www.theguardian.com/football/201 ... rsenal-agm
Do me a favour, you think he knew who Mesut Ozil was on August 15th?
