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ESPN staff 10y

Arsenal pay majority shareholder Stan Kroenke £3m

Arsenal's latest accounts reveal that majority shareholder Stan Kroenke has received a payment of three million pounds from the club.

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Kroenke's company, KSE LLC, was paid the money "for strategic and advisory services" in relation to Arsenal's broadband division.

According to The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph, the American tycoon has never withdrawn dividends from his US sports franchises -- which include NBA side Denver Nuggets, Colorado Rapids of the MLS and NFL outfit St Louis Rams. 

#INSERT type:image caption:Kroenke is the majority shareholder at Arsenal, owning more than 66 percent of the club's shares. END#

Arsenal already have the most expensive tickets in the Premier League, with the cheapest season ticket breaking the 1,000-pound mark.Tim Payton, spokesman for the Arsenal Supporters Trust, claims the club's three percent increase on season ticket prices this summer tallies with the three million-pound sum received by Kroenke, who has frequently evaded the issue during the club's annual meetings.

However, the 67-year-old entrepreneur has previously expressed his admiration for the American system also employed by the Glazer family at Manchester United.

"Since they took over they have won and they have increased revenues by a huge amount. If I was a fan of that club, I would go there and go 'Wow!' because how could you do it any better?" he said in Nov. 2011, as reported in The Guardian.

"We have a whole different philosophy I think in the States, maybe, but I think it's time for everybody to think a little bit. I think they ought to think about who invests in these clubs. He [Glazer] took money out of the club. So what? [LA Lakers owner] Jerry Buss takes money out of his club. A lot of owners in the US do. No one ever says anything about it."

Arsenal's financial figures show that the club made a 4.7 million pound profit, which covered the year ending May 31, 2014, including cash reserves of 173 million pounds.

With Arsenal's Annual General Meeting on the horizon on Oct. 16, Kroenke's payment will no doubt be the major talking point on the agenda.

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