Stan Kroenke

Stan Kroenke
Kroenke in 2019
Stan Kroenke
Born	Enos Stanley Kroenke 29 7, 1947
Birthplace	Columbia, Missouri, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Real estate developer, sports team owner
Known for	Owner of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Arsenal F.C., Los Angeles Rams
Education	University of Missouri (BA, MBA)
Spouse(s)	Ann Walton Kroenke

Enos Stanley Kroenke (born July 29, 1947) is an American billionaire real estate developer and sports team owner whose holdings span multiple professional leagues across the United States and Europe. Born and raised in Missouri, Kroenke built his fortune through a real estate empire centered on shopping plaza developments before expanding into professional sports ownership on a scale matched by few individuals in the world. He is the founder and principal owner of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), a holding company whose portfolio includes Arsenal F.C. of the English Premier League, the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL), the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer (MLS), and the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). Under his ownership, either partial or full, several of his teams have captured major championships, including two Super Bowls for the Rams, two Stanley Cups for the Avalanche, one NBA Championship for the Nuggets, and one MLS Cup for the Rapids. Among the largest private landowners in the United States, Kroenke is also known for his vast ranch holdings across several western states.

Early Life

Enos Stanley Kroenke was born on July 29, 1947, in Columbia, Missouri, a university city in the central part of the state. He was named after Enos Slaughter, the Hall of Fame baseball outfielder who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, reflecting his family's deep roots in Missouri sports culture. Kroenke grew up in a modest environment; his father operated a lumber business, which gave the young Kroenke an early exposure to commerce, construction, and the workings of small enterprise in the American Midwest.

Columbia's identity was shaped by the University of Missouri, and Kroenke's upbringing in the town instilled in him a lasting connection to the university and the broader Missouri community. Growing up in a family that valued hard work and business acumen, Kroenke developed entrepreneurial instincts at a young age. His early life in the heartland of America would later inform his approach to real estate development, where he demonstrated an understanding of growth patterns in suburban and exurban communities across the country.

Education

Kroenke attended the University of Missouri in his hometown of Columbia, where he earned both a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Business Administration (MBA). His time at the university was formative, not only academically but also in establishing connections that would prove valuable throughout his business career. The University of Missouri's strong business program provided Kroenke with the foundational knowledge in finance, management, and real estate that he would later apply to build one of the largest privately held development companies in the United States.

Kroenke has maintained ties to the University of Missouri throughout his life, and his connection to the institution has been a recurring element of his public identity as a Missouri-based businessman who rose to international prominence.

Career

Real Estate Development

Kroenke's primary fortune was built through real estate development, an industry he entered after completing his MBA. He founded the Kroenke Group, a development firm that became one of the most prolific builders of shopping plazas and retail spaces in the United States. The firm's business model was rooted in a keen understanding of suburban expansion: Kroenke specialized in developing retail centers anchored by major discount retailers, most notably Walmart.

The connection to Walmart was not merely commercial. Kroenke married Ann Walton, daughter of James "Bud" Walton, who co-founded Walmart alongside his brother Sam Walton. This familial connection placed Kroenke within the orbit of one of the wealthiest families in the world and provided both business synergies and significant financial resources. The Kroenke Group developed numerous Walmart-anchored shopping plazas across the country, capitalizing on the retail giant's aggressive expansion during the 1980s and 1990s. By the early 2000s, Kroenke had amassed a real estate portfolio that ranked among the largest in the United States.

Kroenke's real estate interests extended well beyond retail plazas. He became one of the largest private landowners in the United States, acquiring vast tracts of ranch land across the American West. In 2012, he purchased the Broken O Ranch in Montana for approximately $132.5 million, adding to an already substantial collection of properties. In 2016, he purchased the Waggoner Ranch in Texas, a storied property that had been listed for $725 million, making it one of the largest ranch transactions in American history. These acquisitions established Kroenke as one of the most prominent landowners in the country, a status recognized by The Land Report, which has consistently listed him among America's 100 largest landowners.

Sports Ownership: Early Ventures

Kroenke's entry into professional sports ownership began in the 1990s and would eventually grow into a cross-sport, cross-continental empire. His first major investment came with the purchase of a stake in the St. Louis Rams of the NFL. He subsequently acquired or invested in several Colorado-based franchises, including the Denver Nuggets, the Colorado Avalanche, the Colorado Rapids, and the Colorado Mammoth. To consolidate these holdings, Kroenke established Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), which serves as the umbrella organization for his various sports properties.

The management structure of Kroenke's sports empire was shaped in part by NFL ownership rules, which prohibit team owners from holding majority stakes in professional sports franchises in other NFL markets. To comply with these regulations, the Nuggets and Avalanche franchises were held in the name of his wife, Ann Walton Kroenke. This arrangement allowed the Kroenke family to maintain control over franchises in both the St. Louis/Los Angeles and Denver markets simultaneously.

The Los Angeles Rams

One of the most consequential and controversial chapters of Kroenke's career in sports ownership was his relocation of the Rams franchise from St. Louis to Los Angeles. Kroenke had been a minority owner of the Rams since the mid-1990s and gradually increased his stake until he became the majority owner.

In January 2015, Kroenke announced plans to build a new stadium complex in Inglewood, California, signaling his intent to move the franchise to the Los Angeles market, which had been without an NFL team since 1994. The proposed venue, which would become SoFi Stadium, was envisioned as a state-of-the-art facility that would anchor a larger entertainment district.

The relocation was formally approved by NFL owners in January 2016, and the Rams moved to Los Angeles for the 2016 season, initially playing at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before SoFi Stadium was completed in 2020. The move was deeply unpopular in St. Louis, where fans and civic leaders accused Kroenke of abandoning the city after it had supported the franchise for over two decades. The city and the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority subsequently filed a lawsuit against Kroenke and the NFL, alleging that the league had not followed its own relocation guidelines. The legal dispute proved costly for the entire league before ultimately being settled.

Despite the controversy, the relocation proved financially transformative for the franchise. SoFi Stadium became one of the most expensive and technically advanced sports venues in the world. The Rams went on to win Super Bowl LVI following the 2021 season, bringing an NFL championship to Los Angeles under Kroenke's ownership.

Arsenal F.C.

Kroenke's involvement with Arsenal F.C., one of the most storied clubs in English football, began in 2007 when he acquired a stake in the North London club. His initial investment made him a significant minority shareholder, and he progressively increased his holdings over the following years.

Reports indicated that Kroenke was in advanced talks regarding his investment in Arsenal as early as 2007, when he was described as an "American tycoon" pursuing a significant stake in the club. His growing presence at Arsenal attracted attention from both fans and the financial press, with Sky News among the outlets tracking his increasing investment in the club.

In 2011, Kroenke made a formal takeover bid that brought his shareholding above the threshold required to trigger a mandatory offer to remaining shareholders under UK securities law. He eventually achieved full ownership of Arsenal, taking the club private and delisting it from public markets.

Kroenke's ownership of Arsenal has been a source of persistent debate among the club's supporters. Many fans have criticized what they perceive as a lack of investment relative to the spending of rival clubs in the Premier League. Kroenke has generally favored a self-sustaining financial model for Arsenal, in which the club's spending on player transfers and wages is funded by its own commercial revenues rather than by cash injections from the owner. This approach has drawn comparisons — both favorable and unfavorable — to the investment models employed by other Premier League club owners.

In 2021, Arsenal was announced as one of the founding members of the proposed European Super League, a breakaway competition that would have created a largely closed league of elite European clubs outside the existing UEFA competition structure. The proposal generated fierce opposition from fans, players, pundits, and governments across Europe, and Arsenal, along with the other English clubs involved, withdrew from the project within days of its announcement. The episode proved damaging to Kroenke's relationship with Arsenal's fanbase, with organized protests and calls for him to sell the club.

Kroenke also owns Arsenal Women, which competes in the Women's Super League, England's top division of women's football. The women's team has been part of the broader Arsenal structure and has benefited from increased investment in women's football across the English game.

Other Sports Ventures

Beyond the Rams and Arsenal, Kroenke's sports portfolio encompasses a broad array of franchises across multiple leagues. The Denver Nuggets, held in the name of Ann Walton Kroenke, won the NBA Championship in 2023. The Colorado Avalanche, also held under Ann Walton Kroenke's name, won the Stanley Cup twice during the period of Kroenke family ownership. The Colorado Rapids won the MLS Cup in 2010, and the Colorado Mammoth have captured two National Lacrosse League championships.

Kroenke Sports & Entertainment also entered the esports arena, acquiring a franchise in the Overwatch League, the professional esports league operated by Blizzard Entertainment. The franchise, known as the Los Angeles Gladiators, was announced as part of the league's inaugural slate of teams.

Media and Outdoor Interests

Kroenke expanded his business interests into media, founding an outdoor television channel called My Outdoor TV (MOTV). The channel focused on hunting, fishing, and other outdoor pursuits, reflecting Kroenke's personal interests as a rancher and landowner. However, the venture attracted controversy when it was reported that the channel aired content featuring the hunting of endangered animals and trophy hunting. The issue drew criticism from animal welfare organizations and from some Arsenal fans, who expressed discomfort with the club's owner being associated with such programming.

Personal Life

Stan Kroenke is married to Ann Walton Kroenke, the daughter of James "Bud" Walton, who co-founded Walmart with his brother Sam Walton. The marriage connected Kroenke to one of the wealthiest families in the United States, and the Walton fortune has been a significant factor in the family's ability to acquire and maintain their extensive portfolio of sports franchises and real estate holdings.

The couple has children, including Josh Kroenke, who has taken an active role in the management of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. Josh Kroenke has served in various executive capacities with the family's sports teams, including a prominent role in the operations of Arsenal F.C. and the Denver Nuggets.

The Kroenke family maintains residences in multiple locations, consistent with their business interests spanning Missouri, Colorado, California, and their extensive ranch properties across the western United States. Kroenke's vast land holdings, which include the Broken O Ranch in Montana and the Waggoner Ranch in Texas, reflect his interest in ranching and the American West.

Despite his wealth and the public profile that accompanies ownership of major sports teams, Kroenke has generally maintained a low public profile. He rarely gives interviews and is not known for the kind of public visibility that characterizes some other sports franchise owners. This reticence has itself been a source of frustration for some fans of his teams, particularly at Arsenal, where supporters have at times called for greater transparency and engagement from the club's ownership.

Kroenke is also known as a wine enthusiast. He owns vineyards and has been profiled in wine industry publications, including Wine Spectator.

Recognition

Kroenke's business achievements have earned him recognition on various lists of the wealthiest and most influential people in the United States and the world. Forbes has regularly included him on its rankings of the richest Americans, with his net worth driven by the combined value of his real estate holdings, sports franchises, and his family's Walmart-related wealth.

His status as one of America's largest landowners has been documented by The Land Report, which has consistently placed him among the top 100 private landowners in the country. The scale of his land acquisitions — including the Broken O Ranch and the Waggoner Ranch — has attracted significant media attention and positioned Kroenke as a major figure in the American ranching and land conservation landscape.

In the sports world, Kroenke's accomplishments as an owner are measured by the collective success of his franchises. The championship victories achieved by the Rams, Avalanche, Nuggets, Rapids, and Mammoth represent a breadth of success across multiple sports that few owners in history have matched. SoFi Stadium, the home of the Los Angeles Rams, has been recognized as one of the premier sports and entertainment venues in the world, hosting Super Bowl LVI and serving as a centerpiece of the 2028 Olympic Games preparations in Los Angeles.

Legacy

Stan Kroenke's legacy is defined by the scope and ambition of his business empire, which extends from shopping plazas and ranch lands to some of the most prominent professional sports franchises in the world. His career illustrates the intersection of American real estate development, sports ownership, and global commerce in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.

As the owner of teams in the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLS, NLL, and English Premier League, Kroenke assembled a portfolio of sports assets that is among the most diverse ever held by a single family. The championships won by his teams across multiple leagues represent a level of cross-sport success that places him in rare company among sports owners.

However, Kroenke's legacy is also marked by controversy. The relocation of the Rams from St. Louis to Los Angeles remains a deeply contested episode in American sports history, viewed by many in St. Louis as a betrayal of a loyal fan base. His ownership of Arsenal has been frequently criticized by supporters who believe the club has underinvested in its playing squad relative to its Premier League rivals. The European Super League debacle of 2021 further damaged his standing among football fans, who viewed the proposed breakaway competition as an affront to the traditions and competitive structure of European football.

Kroenke's extensive land holdings have ensured that his influence extends beyond the world of sports. As one of the largest private landowners in the United States, he occupies a significant position in debates about land use, conservation, and the future of the American West. His acquisition of historic ranches such as the Waggoner Ranch has preserved large tracts of land under single ownership, a practice with both economic and environmental implications.

Whether viewed through the lens of business acumen, sports championship success, or the controversies that have accompanied his ownership decisions, Stan Kroenke stands as one of the most consequential figures in American sports and real estate in the modern era.