10 Things You Didn’t Know about Rams Owner Stan Kroenke

Stan Kroenke is the American businessman who owns Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. As a result, he plays an important role in the world of business, not least because he owns some of the most notable sports teams in the English-speaking world. Here are a few things you didn’t know about the owner of the Rams.

1. Grew Up in Mora, MS

Kroenke was born and raised in a place called Mora, which can be found in the state of Mississippi. In short, Mora is one of the numerous unincorporated communities that can be found in the United States, meaning communities that haven’t formed their own municipal governments but are instead governed by bigger administrations. It is interesting to note that unincorporated communities are common in the United States and Canada but much less so in other countries.

2. Worked For His Father’s Business As a Child

As a child, Kroenke worked for his father’s business. For example, his first job was sweeping the floor of his father’s lumber business. Likewise, he has stated that by the time he was 10, he was the one responsible for keeping the lumber business’s books.

3. Married to the Daughter of a Walmart Co-Founder

Kroenke is married to Ann Walton Kroenke, who is one of the two daughters of Walmart co-founder Bud Walton. Since Ann and her sister inherited Bud Walton’s stocks when he passed away in 1995, Ann is a billionaire in her own right. With that said, when Kroenke started dating her, Walmart was still in the process of becoming a regional retailer of note. Never mind the multinational colossus that exists in the present time. This is something that Kroenke has been known to stress because he wants people to know that he was the one who built up most of his own wealth rather than inherits it through his wife.

4. Was Always a Big Fan of Sports

Even when he was still a child, Kroenke was a big fan of sports. This can be seen in how he ran track in school, which was on top of him playing baseball as well as basketball. Nowadays, there is even clearer proof of Kroenke’s passion for sports in the form of his sports franchises, which are limited to neither the United States nor the sports that are most popular in the United States. As for why Kroenke is so interested in sports franchises, he has said that their ownership combines two of his favorite things, with one being business and the other being sports.

5. Built His Wealth in Real Estate Development

With that said, Kroenke built his wealth in real estate development. In particular, he is famous for having built numerous shopping centers, which were often anchored by Walmart stores, according to this article. Over time, Kroenke has been known to build other kinds of buildings as well. Furthermore, he has become involved in more and more lines of business, though not so much so that his business empire can be said to lack focus.

6. Major Rancher

For instance, Kroenke is involved in the ranching business. In fact, Kroenke is so involved in the ranching business that he is considered to be one of the biggest landowners in the United States, which speaks volumes about the size of his holdings in this particular field. Due to the sheer number of cattle and other livestock that are raised on ranches, it stands to reason that Kroenke has a position of immense importance in the relevant markets.

7. Has Been Called Someone Who Hasn’t Forgotten Where He Came From

It is interesting to note that Kroenke has been called someone who hasn’t forgotten where he came from. This is shown by the reports of how he sends autographed items from his sports teams to his high school on a regular basis so that they can sell off for the purpose of fundraising. Likewise, there is a story of him sending tickets for a major St. Louis Rams game to two brothers called Milton and Eldon Harms, who were the ones who bought out his father’s lumber business as well as helped take care of his mother when his father passed away.

8. Quiet Personality

Personality-wise, Kroenke has been described as a very quiet kind of person, as shown by the fact that he isn’t particularly interested in seeking out the spotlight offered by an inquisitive media. Besides this, he has also been described by various figures as being smart and analytical, which have been combined with an aptitude for hard work that he picked up through his family background.

9. Was Insulted By Vince McMahon Once

There was a time when Kroenke was insulted by Vince McMahon, who people might recognize as a professional wrestling executive. In short, what happened was that a conflict involving a Denver Nuggets game resulted in the rescheduling of a WWE event that had been booked for the same arena. As a result, McMahon claimed that Kroenke “should be arrested for impersonating a good businessman.” After which, McMahon shoved an impersonator playing Kroenke to the floor at the professional wrestling event while being cheered on.

10. He Had to Transfer Ownership of Two Teams to His Wife

In 2015, Kroenke consented to a cross-ownership arrangement that saw him transferring the ownership of the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche to his wife Ann so that he could hold on to the St. Louis Rams. This was carried out because the NFL has rules forbidding NFL owners from owning other professional franchises in cities with other NFL teams. With that said, the cross-ownership arrangement wasn’t exactly something that came out of nowhere, seeing as how Kroenke bought the St. Louis Rams in 2010 with the understanding that some kind of arrangement would eventually be worked out.