Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno is selling the Major League Baseball team to Stan Kroenke, owner of sports franchises including the NFL’s L.A. Rams.
The sale price was not divulged by the parties, but numerous press reports pegged it at around $4 billion, a new MLB record. The transaction marks the end of a challenging 23-year run under Moreno, with the Angels tied for the worst record in the American League and on track to miss the playoffs this year for the 12th season in a row.
Along with the Rams, Kroenke operates Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, a holding company for the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, and Arsenal of the Premier League. During the past four season, each of those teams has won a league championship.
Moreno, 80, was the first Latino owner of an MLB team. He took over in 2003, the year after the team’s lone World Series title. A string of playoff appearances followed, but Moreno provoked the Orange County fanbase by rebranding the team long known as the California Angels to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Moreno’s goal was to more closely align the team with the main L.A. sports scene, but the move never gained traction, and wound up prompting a lawsuit by the city of Anaheim.
On the field over the past decade, the Angels were unable to get on a winning track despite having top-tier stars like Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout on their roster. Ohtani was lured away by the L.A. Dodgers in free agency, while Trout’s former All-Star career has been derailed by injuries of late.
“The Angels are a storied franchise anchored in a great market,” Kroenke said in a statement released by both the Angels and KSE. “We look forward to an exciting future with the Angels organization.”
Added Moreno in a separate statement, “We believe with KSE’s experience and success they are the best next owner for the franchise. The Angels Organization looks forward to continuing its commitment to the fans, our employees, the players and our business partners.”
Kroenke, a billionaire Walmart heir, has led the redevelopment of former racetrack Hollywood Park near the L.A. airport. The linchpin of the tract, billed as the largest urban mixed-use development in the Western U.S., is SoFi Stadium. The venue, which will host its second Super Bowl next February, was a World Cup site over the summer and will be a key part of the L.A. Summer Olympics in 2028.
