COMPANIES Arsenal Football Club, whose board has steadfastly opposed the idea of a foreign buy-out, edged closer to US ownership on Friday when Stan Kroenke lifted his stake to 28.3 per cent, just short of the 30 per cent threshold that would trigger a full takeover for the Premiership club.
The board, which has strenuously tried to thwart the ambitions of Alisher Usmanov, the Russian billionaire steel magnate and holder of just over 25 per cent of the stock, appears to have sanctioned the new share purchase by Mr Kroenke.
