Stan Kroenke riles Arsenal supporters as he praises LA Rams’ ‘great fans’ after Super Bowl win in new £4BILLION stadium
UNPOPULAR Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke toasted Los Angeles’ “great fans” after completing his Hollywood dream.
The Gunners chief hoisted the NFL’s greatest prize aloft in his £4BILLION SoFi stadium following a dramatic Super Bowl on Sunday night.
Kroenke’s Rams took down the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 thanks to a late touchdown from wide receiver and game MVP Cooper Kupp.
Unlike in North London, 74-year-old mogul Kroenke is loved on America’s West Coast after bringing football back to the City of Angels in 2016.
Following the presentation of the Vince Lombardi trophy, beaming billionaire Kroenke, 74, said: “I’m really proud of this group, all the guys, I’m so happy for them.
“These players are unbelievable and they just hung in there. It was a tough game and I’m so proud of them executing it like they did.
“As far as building this stadium — it’s turned out all right. Thanks to the great fans of Los Angeles — their first Super Bowl trophy in Rams house.”
But his joy was not met with too much support from Gunners fans who want him to show similar affection for their Premier League club.
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Jordan Hickson wrote on Twitter: “Now @RamsNFL have won the #SuperBowl can Kroenke now majorly invest in Arsenal so we can win the Prem again.”
This train of thought was echoed by Larry Kwirirayi, who posted: “Now that Kroenke has won the #SuperBowl, can he use the same formula to build an @arsenal team to win the league and champions league?”
And another Gooner wrote: “Great now Stan Kroenke can invest his money into the Arsenal for God's sakes.”
Darius Lovehall hopes that Kroenke ‘has something up his sleeve’ when it comes to Arsenal, and Cameron Ahmad wants the American to ‘give funds in the summer to win the Champions League’.
Steve Nicoll added: “He runs Arsenal like a corner shop – as long as it’s making enough money to tick over then no change needed as far as he’s concerned.
“Nothing will change until we have a new owner.”
Los Angeles had been without a team since 1995 when the Rams left for St Louis before Kroenke hatched a plan to move them back.
In 2014 he bought a 60-acre plot in Inglewood in south-west LA to build a new home for his team and the Chargers, who moved up the road from San Diego in 2017.
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Sean McVay — who became the youngest head coach in modern NFL history when Kroenke hired him in 2017 aged just 30 — was the next piece of the jigsaw.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was 37 when he took over in December 2019.
But while fed-up Gooners have protested about their team’s lack of big-name signings and fruitless transfer windows, the Rams went all in and built a star-studded ‘win now’ team in a bid to land the Super Bowl on home soil.
Kroenke traded away his future first-round draft picks for established veterans and somehow stayed under the league’s £135m salary cap.
Stars such as quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr, cornerback Jalen Ramsey and outside linebacker Von Miller joined an already talented team.
Stafford, 34, who moved to the Rams from Detroit Lions in March last year, threw three touchdowns on Sunday.
And LA’s fearsome defensive line sacked Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow seven times to equal Pittsburgh Steelers’ 46-year-old Super Bowl record.
Kroenke followed in the footsteps of Manchester United chiefs the Glazers — who are also despised by their club’s fans — with his SoFi Stadium success.
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The Red Devils owners saw their Tampa Bay Buccaneers win the Super Bowl on home soil last season, the first team to do so.
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Legendary quarterback Tom Brady moved to Tampa Bay in 2020 after 20 glittering years in New England, where he won six Super Bowls.
And long-suffering Arsenal and United fans can only look on enviously while their owners bask in glory across the pond.