David Dein, the former Arsenal vice-chairman, has sold his stake in the club to a Russian billionaire for £75 million, introducing another player into the battle for control over the last of England's top four football clubs not in foreign hands.

Mr Dein, who was forced out of Arsenal in April, allegedly because he supported a bid by an American billionaire, Stan Kroenke, to take over the club, announced the sale of his 14.58 per cent to a company co-owned by Alisher Usmanov, a Russian mining tycoon this afternoon.

The sale will deliver an astonishing profit to Mr Dein, who bought his shares in the club for less than £300,000 in 1983, but does little to clarify the future of Arsenal, which has been awash with rumours of takeover bids since moving to the new £390 million Emirates Stadium at the start of last season.

Mr Dein has been widely expected to engineer a return to the club since he was acrimoniously forced out in April because of "irreconcilable differences" with the rest of the Arsenal board, which opposed an attempt by Mr Kroenke, the owner of various sports franchises in the US, to increase his stake.

In an attempt to dampen speculation about takeover bids, the other leading shareholders in Arsenal -- Danny Fiszman, who holds a 24.11 per cent stake, and Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith (15.9 per cent) -- agreed not to sell their shares for a year.

But it has done little stop a procession of suitors, until today led by Mr Kroenke, a property developer who owns the Colorado Rapids, a Major League Soccer team, and Bernie Ecclestone, the flamboyant owner of Formula One.

Over his 25-year career at the club, Mr Dein became one of the most powerful men in English football and Arsenal's leading executive, personally carrying out transfer deals and orchestrating the arrival of Arsene Wenger in 1997: a move that transformed the fortunes of the club.

Today's deal suggests an outline of Mr Dein's intentions. His stake is now officially owned by Red and White, an investment company established specifically to hold equity interests in Arsenal. It is co-owned by Usmanov and his long time business associate Farhad Moshiri, a London-based investor. Mr Dein is the chairman of the group.

Announcing the deal, Mr Dein said: "I have always had the best interests of Arsenal at heart - I've had a love affair with the club since I was six."

"I firmly believe that the involvement of Red & White with a significant stake and the long-term commitment of Arsene Wenger are absolutely the best outcome for the club, fans and shareholders alike. I am delighted to have found, in Farhad Moshiri and Alisher Usmanov, individuals who share my vision for Arsenal and of where it needs to go to be the world's leading football club."

A statement from Red and White added: “Red and White confirms that it has no current intention to make a takeover offer for Arsenal or to acquire a shareholding in Arsenal which would trigger an obligation to make a takeover offer for Arsenal.”

Mr Usmanov, who has business interests stretching from newspapers to mining concerns, is one of the wealthiest men in Russia with a fortune estimated to be worth more than £3.7 billion. He was ranked 278th in Forbes magazine's list of the world's richest people in 2006.

Gallagher Holdings, his Cyprus-registered investment vehicle, bought 13.5 per cent of Corus, the Anglo-Dutch steel company, between 2003 and 2004 until he sold his stake after a clash with management. He bought 20 per cent of Mount Gibson, an Australian iron ore company, last November, while it was engaged in a takeover battle with a domestic rival.

Mr Usmanov is also president of Gazprominvestholding, the investment arm of Gazprom. He bought the business newspaper Kommersant for $200 million (£102 million) last September.

Who owns what? Major Arsenal shareholders

Danny Fiszman 24.11 per cent

Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith 15.9

Red and White 14.58

Stanley Kroenke 12.19

Richard Carr 4.37

Lansdowne Holdings 2.7 (maybe more)

Peter Hill-Wood 0.8

Other board members: 0.23