Kroenke’s silence not helping Rams fans deal with dome dilemma

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ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI) – Stan Kroenke did not amass a worth of over $5 billion dollars by shooting his mouth off. Nor, has Kroenke been the most outgoing of sports team owners. He hardly ever says anything to anyone in the media. He ignores requests for interviews. He doesn’t return phone calls. Those are just the complaints from British journalists over how he runs his English professional soccer team, Arsenal. We in St. Louis can relate.

Kroenke and his minions have refused to say anything about the team’s future in St. Louis. Remember when the Rams were negotiating with the Convention and Visitors Commission about improvements to the dome? Folks at the CVC chastised me for calling them, negotiations. They claim Kroenke and company never said anything, never negotiated squat face to face, bY phone or on-line. Kroenke et al would simply drop their demands on the table and say get back to us with a response.

So, now Kroenke’s purchased 60 acres of land in Los Angeles and speculation is the Rams may use it for a stadium when the rams move back to LA. or not. The fact remains, the Rams will play in a new stadium sooner or later, either here, or somewhere else. And Kroenke will have to spend a lot of his own money to build it. He just wants to spend as little as possible. And he knows, or he should know, that he’s not going to get much of anything from taxpayers here.

The total St. Louis-area taxpayer subsidies to the Rams during their stay in the Dome is in the hundreds of millions of dollars. During that same time salaries for NFL players have gone up. Stan Kroenke’s net worth has gone up. He is now one of the world’s 300 richest people. The average household income in the St. Louis metro area has dropped. Add that to Kroenke’s seemingly imperial silence and a lot of St. Louisans may become indifferent to whether Kroenke and company stay, or go.

I’m Charles Jaco and that’s Jacology.

KPLR CH 11

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tonyl711

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sounds like sour grapes to me, the Rams have stated that these negotiations will not be public. how much leverage would Stan have if he came out and said "the Rams are staying in St Louis? read the one interview that I know of him giving and he talks about how he has worked at getting the NFL back to St Louis and how those who know him know he can be trusted. truth is it would be stupid of him to say he is staying put.
 

RamFan503

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Dude's just bitter because apparently he can't even afford a shirt that fits.

Man how the media hates not being talked to. Stan's hurting their feelings.:eek:
 

PhxRam

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I still maintain that Stan used up all his favors by becoming a majority owner and will fall in line with whatever the league wants.
 

RamFan503

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I still maintain that Stan used up all his favors by becoming a majority owner and will fall in line with whatever the league wants.
Not sure how that was a "favor" by the league. They made him jump through a few hoops but I would argue that he is the kind of owner the other owners want to see in their club. Y'know, I guy with real money who won't try to pinch more from them as a group. It probably won't matter anyway, but if Stan wanted to move the team and also wanted to pony up the cash, I don't think the other owners would stand in his way because he somehow used up his favors.
 

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Charles Jaco is a shit stirrer...he sucks.
I get that impression as well. He did something last year too (can't remember what), but I literally rolled my eyes during the entire video.
 

RamFan503

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I get that impression as well. He did something last year too (can't remember what), but I literally rolled my eyes during the entire video.
Yeah - I don't remember what it was either but as soon as I saw him I remembered him and it wasn't fondly.
 

PhxRam

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Not sure how that was a "favor" by the league. They made him jump through a few hoops but I would argue that he is the kind of owner the other owners want to see in their club. Y'know, I guy with real money who won't try to pinch more from them as a group. It probably won't matter anyway, but if Stan wanted to move the team and also wanted to pony up the cash, I don't think the other owners would stand in his way because he somehow used up his favors.

In the aftermath of the 1980s antitrust litigation, the League operated as if the cross-ownership ban was still in effect, but authorized occasional exceptions (e.g., permitting Wayne Huizenga to own both the Miami Dolphins and Florida Marlins, and permitting Paul Allen to own both the Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers). The League codified this approach in an amendment to its Constitution and Bylaws that allows cross-ownership in another major league sports team in two narrow circumstances: (1) if the two franchises are in the same city, or (2) if the other league’s franchise is in a neutral market, defined as one that doesn’t currently host an NFL team and is not deemed a potential NFL city. Enforcement of the rule has been flexible, giving new controlling owners of NFL teams time to divest conflicting interests, and to do so in creative ways — for instance St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke
 

Pancake

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Someone give the guy Shatners number please. There has to be a better toupee maker out there.
 

RamFan503

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I just didn't view that as some huge favor. They had done it for other owners and they made Stan jump through some silly hoops so that it would appear kosher. But like I said - I don't think it's going to come to that anyway. I just don't buy that Stan is better served by, nor is he interested in a move back to LA.
 
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Don't forget Georgia threatened to sue the NFL in which the past commissioner gave in to her demands. That would leave a sour taste in anyone's mouth possibly allowing Kroenke a smoother transition if he ultimately decided to move the Rams back. Most likely they will stay, but Kroenke will have the right to place blame on St. Lousians for not helping with the lions share of building a billion dollar stadium if he packs up and leaves. I'll be a fan either way :p
 

PhxRam

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but Kroenke will have the right to place blame on St. Lousians for not helping with the lions share of building a billion dollar stadium if he packs up and leaves.

Do you really think that will be the angle that he takes if he decides to pack up and leave in the middle of the night?

I am just curious..
 

mr.stlouis

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Kroneke stirred the post by buying that land. Obviously no high brass are paying much attention to it but the fans and media are. I'd say he's smart to say nothing because if this many people are looking at it with big eyes, I'm not one of them, then that trickles up to the politics. If Stan came out and said " I want to build a mall there" then he'd lose all leverage he gained. Let the panic attack continue, it's good for Stan and the ST. LOUIS Rams.
 

fearsomefour

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I just didn't view that as some huge favor. They had done it for other owners and they made Stan jump through some silly hoops so that it would appear kosher. But like I said - I don't think it's going to come to that anyway. I just don't buy that Stan is better served by, nor is he interested in a move back to LA.

Im not sure he is better served by staying in St. Louis. The value of the team would be considerably more (value of a new stadium, land, advertising, radio, stadium rights ect.) being in LA. Paying what he paid and then have the team move to one of the biggest cities in the nation and gain considerable value makes total sense to me. Who knows if he is motivated that way at all. Frankly, it didnt make much when Georgia moved from LA to St. Louis other than getting a sweet heart deal on a place to play. The City of LA burned her royally and she got her revenge. Stan has no ax to grind with anyone I would assume, but, if it comes down to pure numbers and business for him, St. Loius better get its act together quickly. The biggest thing St. Loius would have going for it is the incompetence of the political machine in LA. If LA ever decides it wants a team and the Rams are their with their history ect. it would be a hard battle for St. Louis to win. Oakland is always a contender for LA as well.
 

moklerman

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Kroneke stirred the post by buying that land. Obviously no high brass are paying much attention to it but the fans and media are. I'd say he's smart to say nothing because if this many people are looking at it with big eyes, I'm not one of them, then that trickles up to the politics. If Stan came out and said " I want to build a mall there" then he'd lose all leverage he gained. Let the panic attack continue, it's good for Stan and the ST. LOUIS Rams.
In Kroenke's defense, he did buy the land through a dummy corporation and it appears he tried to keep it quiet. If he was trying to use it as leverage, wouldn't he have just bought it with Kroenke Sports and let the whole world know? As it is, it almost worked considering it took a week or so for the media to find out.
 

mr.stlouis

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In Kroenke's defense, he did buy the land through a dummy corporation and it appears he tried to keep it quiet. If he was trying to use it as leverage, wouldn't he have just bought it with Kroenke Sports and let the whole world know? As it is, it almost worked considering it took a week or so for the media to find out.

Excellent point. Kroneke isn't trying to sneak this team out. I think if he had serious intentions about it this early, Goodell would be one of the first to know. Stan must be thinking "I didn't start this crap storm, and I'm not commenting on it." It's his style...
 

HX76

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There was an article in a paper over here (unfortunately you need to subscribe to read it) that basically said the following "Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, 66, intends to create a football team called the Los Angeles Gunners on the west coast of America."

Maybe that is why he purchased the land? Do Football teams and American Football teams share stadiums??
 

moklerman

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The few times I've seen articles about Kroenke and his soccer team they seem to be complaining that he's not spending enough money. Which is the exact opposite of what he's done with the Rams so it seems inconsistent.

And speaking of soccer, hasn't there also been some scuttlebutt about him bringing a team to St. Louis?