Nobody should be shocked. And yet, everybody is.
The Los Angeles Angels were sold to sports mogul Stan Kroenke and his sports management company, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, on Friday for more than $3.9 billion, in what is believed to be a new MLB high for the sale of a team. The sale marks the end of Arte Moreno’s 23-year tenure as the Angels’ owner
The headline above is surprising for some but not for others. There has been a lot of discontent among Angels fans in recent years and many assumed that Arte Moreno would sell the team at some point. The reason for the sale above, the failed negotiations for a new stadium, wasted generational talent and an aging owner are all reasons that had many anticipating this day. It just finally happened.
Why Arte Moreno Sold — And Why Now
In 2003, Arte Moreno purchased the Los Angeles Angels from The Walt Disney Company for $184 million. It was supposed to be the ideal situation for baseball’s favorite underdog. The team played exceptional baseball, made the playoffs on several occasions, and drew customers in droves to games at the Anaheim stadium.
Then things stalled — badly.
In the end, Angels fans are stuck waiting for a winning season after an endless string of losing campaigns. As for Moreno, he’s banking a nice profit and retiring at the ripe old age of 80 after amassing a healthy sum of cash during his 23-year tenure as owner. His departure provides a much-needed breath of fresh air, though Angels fans are left wondering what could have been had Moreno decided to invest in the sort of winning on-field product that would fill the Angels’ soon-to-be sold stadium on a regular basis.
The Angels have actually spent a decent amount of money on player salaries (15th in baseball last year). Unfortunately, they have not spent wisely.
Of course, there’s been one final trademark failure of Moreno’s tenure: the inability to obtain a new baseball stadium. As we’ve previously detailed, the Angels do not own Angel Stadium. It’s a facility that their parent corporation leases from the city of Anaheim (which also owns the land). Any Angel Stadium mixed-use redevelopment will have to be done by the city and stadium landlord. So far, after decades, no deal has materialized.
The added threat of a major MLB lockout scheduled to hit on December 2, 2026 as players increasingly start to battle against team owners makes for an even more appealing time for Arte Moreno to walk away from baseball. The 80 year old owner has clearly decided he wants to do nothing but cash in the Angels for the remainder of his days.
“Sometimes the best thing you can do for something you love is to release it to grow on its own,” said one analyst to ESPN.com. After having made a small fortune with the Angels, Moreno released the team he loves to the care of a man that is willing to develop them into a winner.
Who Is Stan Kroenke — And Why Should Angels Fans Be Excited?
Owner of Stan Kroenke is not typically someone you hear about unless he’s acquired another sports team. As the owner of the Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche, Arsenal F.C. and many more successful teams in different professional sports, he’s normally quiet in his approach to the world of sports. Just build.
His company, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, already owns:
- Los Angeles Rams — NFL (Super Bowl champions)
- Denver Nuggets — NBA (2023 Champions)
- Colorado Avalanche — NHL (Stanley Cup champions)
- Arsenal F.C. — Premier League (2026 Champions)
- Arsenal Women F.C. — Women’s Super League
- Colorado Rapids — MLS
- Colorado Mammoth — National Lacrosse League (Champions)
Since 2022, every single one of the many sports teams that Kroenke owns has won a championship — and that’s true for all of them except the Angels.
Per CNBC/Boardroom, the addition of the Angels brings the total value of the sports and entertainment company of billionaire owner of the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, NFL’s Los Angeles Rams, NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, Arsenal F.C. of the English Premier League, Arsenal Women FC of the Women’s Super League, Colorado Rapids of MLS and Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League, to over $30 billion. Jones family and their Dallas Cowboys are a distant second at $17.6 billion.
His net worth is about $24.3 billion according to Forbes. Moreno, the owner he is purchasing the team from, is worth an estimated $5 billion according to Forbes.
But there is one major move by this owner to review- in relation to Angels fans interest. He moved the Rams from St. Louis to Los Angeles and when SoFi was built, it was a $5B+ privately financed project.
This is the owner of the Angels.
The Real Deal: Angles Owner Moreno Sold to $24.3 Billionaire Sports Magnate. $4 Billion Question: Where Will They Play?
This is the biggest unresolved question hanging over this entire deal.
It remains to be seen what his plans will be for the Angels, but the $1.6 billion price tag for the Angels plus Anaheim Stadium plus roughly 5o acres of the large parking lot surrounding the venue could serve as a great kickstart to securing a relocation to Southern CA. (The surrounding land has proven to be a complicated issue with the city of Anaheim that Moreno was never able to fully address during his tenure).
Kroenke is a unique owner and I wouldn’t put it past him to move the team to Los Angeles and play at a stadium near SoFi. Moreno was unable to work out a deal with the city of Anaheim for Angel Stadium, but there is a large parking lot surrounding the stadium that the owner of the Angels once considered developing into a large retail/hotel complex. Kroenke has connections and significant real estate holdings in the Englewood, CA area where SoFi Stadium is located.
In all probability, the Angels will play their home games in the Greater Los Angeles area, with a new park situated possibly near Kroenke’s SoFi Stadium sports complex in the Englewood area (NFL) in which he has an enormous financial interest (as well as NBA games). Will the team revert to the Los Angeles name, dropping the Anaheim designation? Only time will tell.
I’m not aware that Kroenke has ever publicly commented on the Angels’ stadium situation. That report will have to wait for another day, but rest assured that this is a story that will shape our analyses of the Angels long after Kroenke has taken over from the Moreno family. And as for a new stadium at the current site of Angel Stadium, that would be a new park constructed right next door to the current ballpark, with land provided by Angels’ management, and a market that’s already proven itself willing and able to support a baseball team of this caliber.
One possible way Kroenke proceeds with Angel baseball is that he builds a new ballpark next to Angel Stadium of Anaheim. The Angels could continue to play in the existing ballpark for a few more years while a new facility is being built. All the Angels need is for Kroenke to write a big check to build a new ballpark in Anaheim similar to what he did with SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
What Happens to Mike Trout?
No conversation about the Angels can be had without some reference to Mike Trout.
He’s one of the best baseball players of all time and is also at the tail end of his baseball career. As the organization has endured seasons of sub-.500 baseball and failed to put together a single post-season appearance in his decade with the team, Trout has, unfortunately, experienced some years of heath.
Every fan of baseball needs to acknowledge that for so long the career of the best player in baseball has been squandered. Yes, terrible organizational decisions have ruined the chances of Mike Trout to go to the playoffs while he is still in his prime. He watched his partner in baseball marvel Ohtani depart for the Dodgers and immediately win a World Series and he’s gone.
Will the situation be any different for Trout in the Kroenke era? Trout is in his late 20s and has a family in Southern California. He may decide he wants to stick with the Angels for the remainder of his playing days but his golden years have been wasted in Anaheim.
It remains to be seen how Kroenke treats the 30-year-old Trout when it comes to ensuring he has the proper tools to help the team compete for years to come. This will be his first real decision as the owner of the Angels.
The MLB Lockout Wildcard
Another thing that people might not realize is that Kroenke is purchasing this team at the cusp of another potentially, disastrous MLB work stoppage for players.
Baseball is also going to be having a huge player-versus-owner labor fight in the near future. Could a MLB lockout occur as early as December 2, 2026? Many details of the future of the Collective Bargaining Agreement of baseball remain up for negotiation including whether or not there will be a salary cap.
Many fans and even baseball personnel view the upcoming owner-vs.-player negotiations with fear. Why on earth would someone want to buy into baseball right now, when there is even a possibility that there will be no baseball played in 2027?
However, looking at this from another angle, the salary cap MLB owners are seeking in CBA negotiations will likely increase the value of every franchise in baseball, including Trout, once they negotiate it out. Work is already begun to this end and can lead to a sealing of massive profits for the existing owners for many years to come for simply locking in a structured investment model that will enable them to continue to make loads of money for decades to come.
In fact, Kroenke may have bought the Angels at just the right time. At first glance, buying a team during the threat of a lockout appears to be a terrible idea. However, his ownership of other successful teams and his $30 billion sports empire could allow for him to go allNKPTCA and privately fund the Angels infrastructure as well as the other two LA-based teams he will now own.
What This Means for the AL West and All of MLB
Angels fans are excited at the prospect of an influential and wealthy owner finally bringing some much needed success to the club. The club have been struggling in the AL West for over a decade, whilst the Astros, Mariners and Rangers have all started to find some form of success.
The Angels have been an afterthought.
Because of Kroenke’s immense wealth and resources he can purchase a franchise and begin to rebuild it immediately to start competing for baseball championships within several years. While being an owner of the Angels will be exciting for baseball fans, there is hope that he will be a different type of owner than Kroenke has been for Arsenal fans.
It’s going to be really fun to watch the AL West right now.
Fan Reaction: Joy, Hope, and One Warning
Angels fans have been reacting happily on social media. After all the patience that Angels fans have displayed following years of watching a team failing to even achieve third place in the AL West division while watching two of baseball’s biggest stars in Ohtani and Trout watch their careers in Anaheim come to an end, one man is going to try to change that.
There is one caveat of concern here. With Kroenke being the owner of Arsenal Football Club, fans know all too well how he operates. In summary, an absentee owner who rarely gets involved with the football club unless he has to, often due to being spread too thin across his other sports franchises. Will the same apply to the other LA-based sports team?
Providing that Kroenke is as engaged with the Angels as he has been with the Rams, this will likely be the best thing that has ever happened to this organization.
Key Numbers at a Glance
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Sale Price | ~$4 Billion (MLB record) |
| Previous MLB Record | $3.9B — San Diego Padres (2026) |
| Moreno’s Original Price | Under $200M (2003) |
| KSE Empire Value | $30B+ (World #1) |
| Kroenke Net Worth | ~$24.3 Billion |
| Teams in KSE Portfolio | 8 across 8 leagues |
| Championships Since 2022 | 6 across 6 sports |
| Consecutive Losing Seasons | 11 (under Moreno) |
| Deal Close | Q1 2027 (pending approval by MLB). |
| Potential MLB Lockout | December 2, 2026 |
The Bottom Line
The biggest story in baseball for 2026 is the Los Angeles Angels sale to billionaire owner of several teams, Stan Kroenke. The worst run franchise in the history of baseball with two of the greatest players to ever suit up for a baseball team are now owned by the most successful owner in all of sports.
The sale of the Angels does not answer the biggest questions surrounding the club: will the new owner build a new stadium for the team? And will he be able to bring back the most valuable player in franchise history in Mike Trout?
It will be interesting to see how the Angels fare under the new regime but for now, with everything that Kroenke has brought to the other sports that he is involved in (NFL, NBA, NHL and Premier League) – there is plenty to be optimistic about an improvement for the Los Angeles baseball franchise.
