Ahead of our match against Manchester United at SoFi Stadium, the KSE family came together for a community initiative led by ourselves and the Los Angeles Rams that showcased the special connection and sense of belonging being driven across the KSE group.
One hundred community participants, aged 7-12, who the Rams engage in community programmes in Inglewood and South Los Angeles participated in a ‘Football Meets Football’ clinic – a mixture of games and activities involving football and soccer.
KSE Owner/Chairman Stan Kroenke and Vice Chairman Josh Kroenke were joined at the event by Mikel Arteta and Martin Odegaard, LA Rams head coach Sean McVay, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, safety Quentin Lake, offensive lineman Grant Miller and running back Kyren Williams.
The coaches and players joined in the activities and fielded questions from the children in an action-packed afternoon at Loyola Marymount University.
In celebration of us coming to LA and playing at SoFi Stadium, KSE has brought their teams from London, Denver and LA together, creating an opportunity to meet, share knowledge and spend time together.
On Friday, former players representing these teams, along with staff and partners, joined together for lunch and a panel discussion about their careers and the connection they have with the clubs they played for. While they may have all played different sports in different cities, they all are part of the same global family.
SoFi Stadium, the home of the LA Rams, is located at Hollywood Park, a near 300-acre sports and entertainment destination being developed by Stan Kroenke in Inglewood, California.
Speaking about his relationship with McVay, Arteta said: “I know Sean well. We’ve met a few times and obviously we have the same ownership so that connects everybody - not only coaches but players and the organisation.
"There’s a lot of know-how and skills that we take and build from each other, and it was great to see everybody together. It’s not often we have the opportunity to do it, but it’s something we can really use to benefit everyone within the organisation.”
Speaking about coming to the US, he added: “It’s an opportunity for us to connect with our supporters. If they’re Arsenal supporters then great, and if they are football supporters let’s get them to become Arsenal supporters. That would mean that we produced joy and excitement in the way we play the game. That’s one of the objectives, but the main one is to win the game, that’s for sure.
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