Missouri billionaire Stan Kroenke has decided to exercise his matching rights clause and will try to purchase the remaining 60-percent share of the St. Louis Rams.
The surprise move was announced Monday by a Kroenke spokesman.
((Here's a copy of the statement...))
Illinois businessman Shahid Khan had reached an agreement-in-principle with owners
Chip Rosenbloom and his sister, Lucia Rodriguez on February 11th.
((Here's Khan's statement...))
But, Kroenke had 60 days to decide whether to keep his 40 percent stake, sell it, or exercise his right to buy the team outright. He did the latter...
Complicating the issue is Kroenke's ownership of the NBA's Denver Nuggets ((and the Pepsi Center)), and the NHL's Colorado Avalanche which run on Kroenke's Altitude Sports Network along with his MLS Colorado Rapids ((who play in a Kroenke-owned stadium)), and the MLL Colorado Mammoth ((who have one of the best sweaters in the business)). He is also close to a 30-percent owner of the Arsenal Football Club.
NFL rules prohibit cross-ownership in dueling markets, and Kroenke will have some decisions to make...
Here's how Fox2 in St. Louis broke the news...
((HT: KTVI-TV/Fox2Now))
Like a lot of professional sports franchises these days, there's a loophole in the Rams' lease. It allows them to move after the 2014 season if the Edward Jones Dome is not deemed among the top 25-percent ((or 8th-and-up)) of all NFL stadiums by various measurements... whatever those are...
The dome is becoming one of the league's older venues. The city's convention commission spent $30 million upgrading the facility before last season, installing new scoreboards and video boards and upgrading club seating. Next season they're due for a new grass field that can be stored and used in subsequent seasons, a major upgrade.
But would the Missouri-born Kroenke move the team, say, back to Los Angeles...???
Remains to be seen... but an interesting thought nonetheless...
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