Kroenke Is Buying the Angels — the $4 Billion Part Isn't Official

Stan Kroenke, owner of the Los Angeles Rams, has agreed to buy a controlling interest in the Los Angeles Angels from Arte Moreno, ending a 23-year run that fans spent the summer chanting to end. Kroenke Sports & Entertainment announced the deal Tuesday without disclosing a price; a person with knowledge of it told the Los Angeles Times the valuation is an MLB-record $4 billion. Nothing changes this season — the sale needs MLB approval and is not expected to close until the first quarter of 2027.

What was announced, and what was only reported

The announcement itself was short on numbers. Kroenke Sports & Entertainment announced Tuesday it had reached what it called “a definitive agreement,” per Front Office Sports, and the Los Angeles Times, citing the news release, reported the deal is “subject to customary closing conditions” and MLB approval, with closing expected in the first quarter of next year.

The $4 billion did not come from that release. The Times attributed it to a person with knowledge of the deal, not authorized to discuss it publicly; Front Office Sports said terms were not announced but that multiple reports and industry sources pointed to the same valuation; the New York Post put the number in its headline. Treat it as consistently reported, not officially confirmed. If it holds, it edges the $3.9 billion Padres sale for an MLB record.

Twenty-three years, one title, and the drought that defined them

Moreno bought the Angels in 2003, on the heels of the franchise’s only World Series championship, and became MLB’s first Latino owner. His first decade was the best stretch in club history: five American League West titles and two AL Championship Series appearances from 2004 to 2009, per the Los Angeles Times.

Then came the part fans remember. The Angels have not won a playoff game since 2009 and have not reached the postseason since 2014, per Front Office Sports and the New York Post. The Times counts an 11-season playoff drought and losing seasons from 2016 through 2026. All of it happened with three-time AL MVP Mike Trout on the roster and Shohei Ohtani for the first part of his U.S. career.

This summer the Angels flirted with the worst record in baseball, per the Times, and with the first 100-loss season in franchise history, per ESPN — in a division where a losing team is probably making October anyway, and where a Phillies pinch-hit grand slam at Angel Stadium beat them days before the news broke.

Fans stopped waiting quietly, joining MLB’s “tarps off” movement to wave their shirts and chant “sell the team” at Angel Stadium, the Times reported. One spark: Moreno told the Orange County Register in February that survey results showed winning was not a top-five priority for fans, who valued affordability, safety and a “good experience” first.

What Kroenke brings that Moreno did not

Kroenke, 79, is a year younger than Moreno, 80, but arrives with a different machine. KSE owns the Rams, the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, MLS’s Colorado Rapids and Premier League club Arsenal. Front Office Sports calls him the largest private landowner in the country and notes the Angels would make him the first owner of a team in all four major U.S. men’s leagues.

The money gap is stark. ESPN cites a Forbes estimate of $24.3 billion for Kroenke — slightly above Mets owner Steve Cohen, currently MLB’s richest owner, and nearly five times Moreno’s $5 billion.

The trophy case depends on who is counting. The New York Post credits Kroenke with two Super Bowl titles, two Stanley Cups, an NBA championship and a Premier League crown; ESPN instead describes two Super Bowl appearances since the Rams returned to Los Angeles in 2016. The accounts conflict on the Super Bowls, but both describe a portfolio that wins — and ESPN says the Rams are widely seen as prohibitive favorites to get back there in the NFL season that kicks off next week.

The stadium question is the one that actually matters

Kroenke inherits a long-troubled real estate situation with the city of Anaheim, Front Office Sports reports. Moreno tried to buy the city-owned ballpark — the fourth oldest in the majors — as part of a larger redevelopment, but that deal collapsed four years ago amid a corruption investigation of then-Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu. A lease extension signed last year runs as far as 2038 and punted the question. Political pressure to trade the Los Angeles name back for Anaheim is another early test, the outlet says.

Here is why this lands differently now. The Orange County Register argues Kroenke is the first Angels owner who could credibly threaten to leave Anaheim — while stressing it does not think he will. He has undeveloped land at the 300-acre Hollywood Park site in Inglewood, built SoFi Stadium there, and made his first fortune as a developer. Moreno never had that leverage: a new ballpark at roughly $1.5 billion to $2 billion would have eaten much of a $5 billion fortune.

A move to Inglewood would also start a fight with the Dodgers and MLB over what counts as a “local” market, which the Register says nobody can answer cleanly. The likelier play, per the Register, is a development of his own at the Big A, modeled on the OCVibe complex Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli are building across the 57 Freeway around Honda Center — the kind of project Moreno and Anaheim officials long wanted.

Inside the clubhouse, the news landed as relief

Angels general manager John Mozeliak was in his office Tuesday morning when team president Molly Jolly walked in, dropped a folder on his desk and said, “Your day’s about to change,” ESPN reported. Mozeliak, who replaced fired general manager Perry Minasian in late June, had been told a sale was possible but was still surprised.

Trout, signed through 2030, said the sale “doesn’t change” his intent to finish his contract in Anaheim. “I’m excited,” he told ESPN. “Look, the track record — it’s there.” He added: “Seeing the reaction from the fans and some of the guys and the whole vibe, I think it was needed for a fresh start.”

Jolly told ESPN the chants registered with Moreno — “He’s aware of the chants, he knows about them.” ESPN reported this sale was more informal and behind closed doors than Moreno’s public 2022 attempt with multiple bidders and stadium tours, and cited the industry’s shock as evidence.

What happens next

New ownership is not expected to take over until the first quarter of 2027, but the Angels must make offseason decisions before then. Mozeliak needs to settle on a manager — the job belongs to Kurt Suzuki on a one-year contract — and a head of baseball operations, while his own contract runs only through the end of the calendar year.

There is a labor wrinkle too. Front Office Sports notes the closing is slated to closely follow the December 1 expiration of MLB’s collective bargaining agreement, at which point owners are expected to impose a lockout. Watch whether MLB approval lands on schedule, who ends up running baseball operations, and whether Kroenke reopens the redevelopment file Moreno left unresolved.

FAQ

How much is Stan Kroenke paying for the Angels? No terms were announced. A person with knowledge told the Los Angeles Times it is an MLB-record $4 billion valuation, and Front Office Sports says multiple reports and industry sources point to the same number.

When does Kroenke actually take over? Closing is expected in the first quarter of 2027, pending MLB approval. Until then, the current front office keeps running the team.

Will the Angels leave Anaheim? Nothing like that has been announced. A lease extension signed last year runs as far as 2038, per Front Office Sports, and the Orange County Register argues only that Kroenke is the first owner who could make such a threat credible.

What did Mike Trout say about the sale? Trout told ESPN it “doesn’t change” his desire to stay through his contract, which runs to 2030, and that “seeing the reaction from the fans and some of the guys and the whole vibe, I think it was needed for a fresh start.”