Closing Bell

Haslam Sports Group has sold a 10% stake in the Crew in a deal valuing the MLS franchise at $900M, according to a source familiar with the deal. The family of former team physician Pete Edwards, who have been investors in the Crew since HSG became the club’s control owners in 2018, purchased the 10% stake. HSG now owns 70% of the club, with the Edwards family holding the remaining 30%.

Sportico first reported HSG’s sale of an additional 10% stake to the Edwards family. The Crew declined to comment on the transaction.

The Crew have been among the most successful MLS franchises on and off the pitch in the Haslam-Edwards era. The club won MLS Cup titles in 2020 and 2023 while selling out nearly every home match since opening Lower.com Field for $314M in 2021. Ownership has already added premium spaces and even discussed investing in an expansion of the 20,000-seat soccer-specific stadium to accommodate more fans.

The Crew’s $900M valuation in the transaction is the latest data point indicating that MLS franchise values are on the rise. Earlier this year, the family of late Jazz owner Larry Miller purchased a controlling stake in Real Salt Lake, the NWSL’s Utah Royals and their respective facilities at a combined valuation of $600M. That was up from the roughly $400M David Blitzer and Ryan Smith paid in 2022, though that likely had more to do with the rise in NWSL valuations. Minority stakes in NYC FC and FC Cincinnatti have reportedly sold at valuations of $1.5B and $939M, respectively, in the past year.

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The Browns’ $2.4B Brook Park stadium project “cleared a major hurdle” yesterday, as Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine “signed a state budget bill” offering $600M from the state to “cover one-fourth of the stadium’s anticipated cost.” Other budget items signed into law “include measures gutting the state’s ‘Art Modell Law’ that restricts pro sports teams from moving without local consent, as well as guaranteeing the Browns will keep their share of Cuyahoga County ‘sin tax’ money.” The Haslams’ plan calls for Cuyahoga County to “furnish the remaining” $600M, though it “remains to be seen whether county officials will offer the money” (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 7/1).

Cuyahoga County Exec Chris Ronayne said today he “has no plans” to “exercise the option provided under Ohio’s new state budget to seek voter approval of an increase in the sin tax to help pay for the upkeep of the county’s three professional sports stadiums.” Instead, he said that the state “needs to first fix the law, including allowing the county to seek a greater increase in the tax.” Ronayne also “stood firm in his opposition to the county borrowing money” to help pay for the Browns’ stadium project in Brook Park. The sin tax has been “based on fixed amounts per unit.” The new budget “allows a doubling of those rates,” if approved by county voters. Ronayne said that while a “doubling would increase the amount collected to close to” $25M a year, it “falls short of the public needs for the facilities.” He said that he had “sought permission” to “quadruple the taxing rates” (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 7/1).

The NFLPA is “not expected to engage in formal negotiations” with the NFL and its team owners on a potential 18-game regular season and other issues related to the sport’s labor agreement “until at least early next year,” according to sources. The target of next spring or beyond for the onset of bargaining “is later than some had expected, leaving it unclear when an 18-game season could be implemented.” NFLPA Exec Dir Lloyd Howell said last July that the union had “been involved in informal, high-level discussions” with the league on the 18-game issue. But sources said that those informal talks “have not yet led to formal negotiations.” A source noted that Howell plans to “spend this fall using his team-by-team meetings with players to set the NFLPA’s bargaining priorities.” The union “could be in position to launch formal negotiations with the league and owners following its annual meeting of player representatives in March.” Some owners had “hoped to have an 18-game season put into effect as soon as 2027 or ’28.” However, it “might be unrealistic” for an 18-game season to occur in 2027 if bargaining does “not commence until the spring of 2026, at the soonest” (WASHINGTON POST, 7/1).

Former Fox Sports anchor and reporter Julie Stewart-Binks has “filed a request for dismissal” of her lawsuit against ousted Fox Sports EVP Charlie Dixon, resolving a legal matter with her former network that began in January when she said she was sexually assaulted by Dixon in 2016. According to court filings, the “dismissal comes following settlement discussions between Fox and Stewart-Binks,” which began in April. Less than a week after Stewart-Binks’ lawsuit was filed, Dixon, who joined Fox Sports in 2015 and eventually ascended to its top programming role with FS1, was placed on administrative leave. Dixon exited the company in April. Dixon’s attorney John Ly said at the time that Dixon “cooperated fully with the investigation” and “denied that the claims of sexual harassment prompted his departure” (THE ATHLETIC, 7/1).

Tepper Sports & Entertainment executive Tamera Green is leaving her full-time role with the Charlotte teams to join the Univ. of South Carolina’s College of Information and Communications, where she will help launch a new sports and entertainment program.

As the college’s co-director of sports media initiatives and a professional-track faculty member, Green will develop and teach graduate classes, continuing education certificate programming and other courses for sports media and entertainment executives. It will be USC’s first sports media program in Charlotte.

Green was hired as Tepper S&E’s SVP & Chief Communications Officer in March 2023. She will continue to work on key projects as a consultant for Tepper, including the Bank of America Stadium renovation. The organization will conduct a search for her replacement after the upcoming NFL season. In the meantime, Sarah Clark will continue to lead corporate communications for Tepper S&E, reporting to CEO Kristi Coleman. Woody Wilder will continue to lead communications for Charlotte FC and Bruce Speight will continue to lead communications for the Panthers.

N.Y. Jets CB Sauce Gardner is a new brand ambassador for the Q-Collar, an FDA-cleared device that seeks to reduce the force of sub-concussive head impacts. Gardner first bought a Q-Collar and wore it on the field last season, saying it gave him “peace of mind knowing I’m taking the extra step to better protect my brain while still playing at the highest level.”

The collar, made by Q30 Innovations, provides a light compression around the neck, increasing blood volume in the head and helping protect the brain. The company touts more than two dozen peer-reviewed studies backing its efficacy, as well as the FDA designation that arose from a study of more than 280 high school football players. Neurosurgeon Dr. Julian Bailes, an early researcher and advocate into the prevention of brain injuries in football, is Q30’s chief medical advisor.

The Q-Collar has been a partner of the Premier Lacrosse League since 2022. It was first popularized in pro sports by former NFLer Luke Kuechly. Other notable athletes to be brand ambassadors include Bills LB Shaq Thompson and recently retired USWNT star Meghan Klingenberg.

Java House, an Indianapolis-based cold brew coffee brand, has been named title sponsor of the Grand Prix of Monterey, this month’s IndyCar event at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The race, now titled Java House Grand Prix of Monterey, will take place July 25-27 at the road course and marks the only visit to Northern California for IndyCar. This is Java House’s first event title sponsorship. Java House’s full line of beverages will be available throughout the race weekend. Java House products will also be integrated throughout all hospitality areas, including premium luxury suites and club style pavilions. Java House Cold Brew Espresso Martinis will be served at select restaurants in the Monterey area leading up to and during the race (WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca).

The Berlusconi family is “leaving soccer again” with the sale of Italian Serie B club AC Monza to American fund Beckett Layne Ventures (BLV). The Berlusconi’s family holding company, Fininvest, announced the sale included an “initial transfer of 80% of the shares by this summer,” with the “remaining 20% to be transferred by June 2026.” BLV is “paying about” $35M for Monza, however financial details of the deal were not announced. Fininvest purchased Monza in 2018 and “oversaw the club’s rise” from the third division to Serie A. But the club, based just outside Milan, finished last in the recently concluded Serie A season and was relegated to Serie B. Fininvest was previously controlled by late AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi, who controlled the club from 1986-2017 (AP, 7/1).

Novant Health, the Hornets’ official healthcare provider, will serve as the team’s practice jersey patch partner. The Novant Health logo will appear on the lower abdomen of the Hornets official practice jersey, a first for the team, and will debut at their upcoming NBA Summer League practices. The Novant Health practice jersey patch was introduced via a video posted on social media platforms featuring G LaMelo Ball and F Brandon Miller. The practice jersey patch entitlement is part of the expanded multiyear deal announced in March, under which Novant Health became the official naming rights partner for the organization’s new state-of-the-art training facility, the Novant Health Performance Center (Hornets).