Gunners hoping to fill chief executive role with MLS man

Earlier this year, Arsenal welcomed Colorado Rapids owner Stan Kroenke to the board, and the club also appear to be poaching their new chief executive from the MLS.

Deputy Commissioner Ivan Gazidis (pictured above) joined the American league in 1994, two years before anyone had ever kicked a soccerball, and has been instrumental in developing the game in the big country.

According to the Daily Mail, the South African-born lawyer  - a known supporter of Game 39 - could be north London-bound:

Gazidis, an Oxford University football Blue, has the credentials for the Arsenal role, having joined the MLS in 1994 as part of their founding management team. Now he oversees all aspects of the competition, as well as being involved in running football organisation CONCACAF.

Arsenal will have a problem attracting Gazidis, whose proposed move to the Premier League with Manchester City fell through when he was reticent to relocate to England.

What should be a greater problem for the Gunners, however, is how much he looks like Daniel Levy…

‘Silent Stan’ given a voice at the Emirates

Arsenal this morning confirmed that American billionaire Stan Kroenke - the gent on the right in the picture above - has been invited onto the board to take a non-executive director role. The owner of the the MLS’ Colorado Rapids and the NBA’s Denver Nuggets has held a 12.4 per cent stake in the club since last year, and his invitation to the board appears to counter the takeover ambitions of Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov.

On the club’s official website, Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood says:

“We are delighted to welcome Stan to the Board of Arsenal. He brings with him a wealth of experience through his direct involvement in sports clubs in the US and we expect to benefit from his commercial insights and knowledge.”

It’s great that Hill-Wood is so welcoming, particularly as he once remarked of the American: “We don’t need his money and we don’t want his sort.”

Kroenke is not party to last year’s lock-down agreement (whereby directors can only sell their stakes to board-approved persons), but has agreed not to extend his shareholding beyond 29.9 per cent in the next year. If either Usmanov or Kroenke reach thirty per cent, they would have to launch a formal takeover.

Next week, Arsenal’s annual results will be formally announced, revealing a huge £225m turnover and record pre-tax profit of £36.7m.