Many people at the Emirates will be particularly sorry to see Gazidis leave, along with Stan Kroenke who has now taken complete control of the club.
But as for the fans, many will be pleased to see Gazidis leave the club, feeling he has done an average job.
Gazidis leaves on October 31 to take a similar role and Arsenal’s chief commercial officer Vinai Venkatesham will take over the role of managing director. Raul Sanllehi, head of football relations, has been appointed head of football.
Gazidis, 53, has been offered a wage of £3.6m – £1m more than Arsenal – so has jumped ship after being allowed too long to mull over the offer. He has also been handed a stake in the club which is owned by American hedge fund Elliott Management.
He started work in north London on January 1 2009 after joining the founding management team of MLS in 1994. In 2001 he became the MLS deputy commissioner.
Gazidis certainly helped Arsenal make money – lots of it – by continuing to ensure that the club’s fans paid full whack, arguably more than any set of fans.
For this, many will never forgive Gazidis.
They also feel he took too long to convince Kroenke to oversee a change of management structure which finally saw Arsene Wenger leave.
Most supporters are also furious they are having to hand over their shares to Kroenke, who has taken full control of the club.
Also, some of Arsenal's commercial deals, it appears, have not been quite as successful as they would have hoped.
Gazidis was due to face some Arsenal fans this Sunday before the Everton game but he will be pleased to avoid this.
His participation in these type of events was rare, which wa snot helpful as Kroenke is famously silent.
Arsenal remain a profitable business but there is an argument they would be making more money had they spent their huge cash reserve – and so performing better on the pitch.
Lack of investment compared to most of the other clubs – alongside sticking with Wenger for too long – has seen the club move backwards. Now they play in the Europa League rather than the money-spinning Champions League.
Equally, the disconnect between the board and fans at Arsenal has never been greater, so many will be delighted that Gazidis is leaving the building.
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