Fresh proposals regarding the European Super League will bring back traumatic memories for many Arsenal fans. In an announcement, A22 - a Madrid-based company formed to assist the formation of the ESL - revealed proposals for a new multi-division competition, with 60 to 80 teams who play a minimum of 14-games-a-season in place of UEFA's current club competitions. There will be no permanent members but it remains to be seen how clubs would be inducted into, or relegated from, the leagues.
While this is different from the failed attempt nearly two years ago, any suggestion that the ESL could be revamped is likely to be greeted with immense suspicion. Arsenal's decision to join the breakaway competition in May of 2021 was, as with many other clubs, a source of great anger for supporters who were bypassed throughout the process of the ESL's original conception.
Stan and Josh Kroenke chose to go back on their decision just days later, but the scars from the fiasco are still present in their relationship with supporters. While significant investment in Mikel Arteta's squad over the past few transfer windows have helped to smooth relations, there are still fears amongst some that they could look to sign Arsenal up to a new version of the Super League one day and Josh Kroenke's previous comments on the situation won't exactly help to sooth those concerns.
READ MORE: What new European Super League proposal means for Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs and Champions League
Supporter frustration at the ESL came to a head back in May 2020, when Josh Kroenke appeared alongside Arsenal CEO Vinai Venkatesham at a virtual Fans' Forum. Various fan representatives were given a chance to hold the Gunners' American owner to account, but first he began proceedings with a statement apologising for the fiasco.
"Leadership from my perspective, if any of you lead different organisations in your own lives, making unpopular decisions that you feel benefit larger groups over time is part of leadership," Kroenke began. "Leadership is also recognising when you are wrong. Quickly correcting your course of action, apologising for your actions and then educating yourself on how to lead better in the future. That's what I'm here to do today. I'm here to explain and listen.
"As this project took shape in a very, very fast manner we asked ourselves two key questions. The first question we asked ourselves, what is worse - a Super League or a Super League without Arsenal? That was a very tough one for us to weigh, but basically the decision we made was a Super League without Arsenal was the worst of those answers. That's what we acted upon. The second question was 'what do the fans want?'. We tried to answer that question in many ways as possible. We are obviously bound by certain confidentiality aspects of the decision we were thinking about making. It was a much more complicated answer then we had time to contemplate.
"I think the global fan wants to see Arsenal vs Barcelona regularly, as much as possible. I think the European fan wants to see more big matches between top clubs because their domestic league is so predictable. I think from an English fans' perspective, this is what was so educating to me over the last 24 or 48 hours, going back 36 hours now - sorry this has been kind of a blur of a week, I haven't slept much. For the English fan they want to see more big matches, but as one Chelsea supporter wrote on a sign I saw online the other day - you still want your cold nights in Stoke. To me that sent a strong message that the EPL, football in the UK as a whole and the fan sentiment in England. We got it wrong and that's why we're here today apologising and to discuss with you."
This was undoubtedly a positive reaction to the situation. With this opening part of his statement, Kroenke acknowledged the frustrations of competitiveness, sporting merit and a lack of fan consultation that had led to the kind of scenes which saw nearly 20,000 supporters gather outside the Emirates Stadium to protest KSE's ownership of the club.
However, what will be of concern to Arsenal fans is the fact that the American went on to admit that the frustrations from the club's perspective that he felt had led to formation of the Super League were still very much there.
"That doesn't mean a lot of our concerns and frustrations weren't addressed or we don't still have those concerns," he said. "None of our intentions as part of this project were to harm the Premier League or English football in any way. Really, most of our frustrations resided in larger conversations about European football as a whole. You've heard us talk primarily about the stability of the football pyramid and that is generally what we were trying to accomplish when we were part of these conversations in recent weeks.
"We can talk about FFP enforcement, we can talk about are we doing enough at European level to combat racism. But for the stability of the football pyramid and talking about grassroots programmes, that we are all for, we want to make sure we're maximising those revenues and those opportunities to stabilise the footballing pyramid. Did we go about it in the incorrect manner this time? Absolutely. But we still think those issues reside."
When pressed specifically by one supporter as to whether he could confirm that Arsenal would never join the ESL again Kroenke went on to add: "As that proposal was constructed, yes." With the fresh proposals that have been announced on Thursday, this will be concerning to some Arsenal fans, as it does leave the door somewhat open to the Gunners signing up to a new Super League on fresh terms.
What will be a source of slight comfort though was Kroenke's promise to increase his interactions with supporters. Prior to the Super League fiasco Stan Kroenke had been given the nickname 'Silent Stan' for his lack of communication, while Josh had also made limited public statements. However, after the Super League he promised to change that.
"I want to interact more in a more meaningful way whether that's at board level or in a Fans' Forum," he said. "This has been an education unto itself of the power of football fans across the world and the power of Arsenal fans, which is spectacular to see honestly."
Generally Kroenke has stuck to his word. The American has been to more Fans' Forums than before, has conducted more interviews and also attended games on a few occasions this season. While this will still not be enough for some fans, for others it will provide a small crumb of comfort that KSE will look to consult with supporters before making such drastic decisions like joining the ESL in the future. If they stick to those words then it's hard to see Arsenal signing up for any form of the competition, but whether they will remains to be seen.
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