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AEG ~ Sony / Re: Sale of AEG
« on: September 20, 2012, 01:18:02 PM »
Vincent Bonsignore: Anschutz exit isn't end of hopes for Farmers Field or NFL in Los Angeles
By Vincent Bonsignore Staff Columnist
Posted: 09/19/2012 06:55:07 PM PDT
Surprised that Phil Anschutz is selling his AEG sports and entertainment empire?
I'm not.
And if you are a fan of AEG's Farmers Field project and the potential of the NFL returning to downtown Los Angeles, Anschutz's announcement Tuesday is actually good news.
But more on that later.
Not long ago I got a text from a high-ranking official in the National Football League saying he heard Anschutz was running out of patience with the process of bringing an NFL team here to play at Farmers Field.
Essentially, the text explained, Anschutz might want out.
"Will keep my ear to the ground and let you know if I hear anything," the text concluded.
Nothing ever came of it, and after making the necessary calls I was assured that Anschutz was still all in and that AEG's Tim Leiweke, who is spearheading the Farmers Field project, was excited about soon gaining full clearance to begin construction and initiating the process of bringing a team to Los Angeles.
In fact, the NFL official subsequently texted again to say, based on conversations with other league figures, the belief is football will be back in Los Angeles relatively soon.
Then came word Tuesday that Anschutz is selling AEG, which includes Staples Center, the NHL champion Kings, pro soccer's Galaxy, part ownership of the Lakers, and major entertainment and real estate holdings in downtown Los Angeles.
And of course, the privately funded $1.3
billion Farmers Field project.
Just like that, it seemed the NFL returning to downtown L.A. was doomed.
The reality is, this is a good thing for Farmers Field.
Better to find out now, rather than later, Anschutz wasn't fully prepared to emotionally and financially march down the aisle with the NFL.
Better he hand AEG over to someone more local, more energetic and passionate about adding onto the downtown L.A. sports and entertainment kingdom he helped create more than a decade ago - someone like Patrick Soon-Shiong, the richest man in Los Angeles and a rabid sports fan already being mentioned as a potential buyer.
This is all about timing.
It's well-established Farmers Field is primarily a Leiweke dream, with the reclusive, Denver-based Anschutz promising his financial support but always a bit skeptical.
It's also no secret the 73-year-old Anschutz isn't keen on making a long-term commitment to owning all or part of the team moving to Los Angeles, a key and necessary aspect relative to the NFL.
Anschutz is a real estate guy, buying and developing land to eventually sell. The NFL is all about ownership consistency and stability. The relationship could have worked, but you get the idea Anschutz might have felt landlocked.
To the surprise of many, Leiweke has marched Farmers Field nearly the length of the field.
And with the project nearly ready to begin construction and the eager NFL ready for Anschutz to take the financial plunge, Anschutz started feeling like an anxious groom on wedding day, not sure he was OK with the commitment he was about to make.
So he thought long and hard and decided the time was right to hand off things to someone else.
And in the process, do right by Los Angeles.
How so?
By selling AEG to a locally based owner whose passion for Los Angeles sports supersedes his own.
Someone fully committed to seeing Farmers Field through while also being supportive of a long-term relationship with the NFL, an assurance the league needs before returning.
And finally, by stepping aside now, mere months before the NFL meets to potentially discuss a team moving here, a new AEG owner should be in place, fully vetted by the NFL and ready to hammer out a deal to bring football back to L.A.
"Someone the NFL is comfortable with, someone with the wherewithal to make this work and make this successful," Leiweke said. "This gives the NFL assurance, and that is critically important."
So while Anschutz stunned everyone with Tuesday's announcement and seemingly pulled the plug on Farmers Field, it's really just a logical next step in the process.
Especially when you consider how convinced the high-ranking NFL official is about pro football returning to Los Angeles, and the excitement in Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones' voice when he told me two weeks ago he was more optimistic than ever L.A. would soon have an NFL team.
Not to mention NFL commissioner Roger Goodell touting Farmers Field last week for the unique game-day experience it will provide while dismissing the notion it won't satisfy the tailgating hopes of L.A. football fans.
Goodell rarely speaks publicly about either of the two local stadium proposals - Farmers Field and Ed Roski Jr.'s City of Industry project - yet there he was practically gushing over the downtown stadium when he had to have an inkling Anschutz was getting antsy and contemplating a sale.
Why did Goodell seem so supportive of Farmers Field if he knew the money man was selling?
Because Goodell probably has a good idea who the new AEG head will be, and is comfortable that, with AEG's current Leiweke-led management team still in place, the process will move along accordingly once the sale is complete.
How fast will a deal go down?
Leiweke said Wednesday he fully expects the new owner to be in place by March when the NFL convenes to talk about a team potentially moving here, if not sooner. He also said the owner will be fully on board with Farmers Field.
By then, it is conceivable an existing team will have applied for relocation - Goodell recently issued a Jan. 1 to Feb. 15 deadline for clubs to express intent to move in time for the 2013 season - and that a deal will be in place in which the new owner buys part or all of the relocating team.
The most likely candidate is the San Diego Chargers, who have an annual escape window from Feb. 1 to April 30 in which they can buy out their lease at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers are struggling at the gate and have waged a decade-long battle to build a new local stadium, to no avail.
Meanwhile, the Rams face an end-of-year ruling by an arbitrator deciding how much it will cost St. Louis to bring the Edward Jones Dome up to necessary standards. If the stadium is not among the top quarter in the NFL by the end of 2014, the Rams can terminate their lease.
The point is two teams are in position to possibly move here by next year.
And with a new AEG owner in place and motivated to make Farmers Field happen, that makes Tuesday's announcement a good thing for Los Angeles.
vincent.bonsignore@dailynews.com
twitter.com/DailyNewsVinny
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login
Unlikely Dynasty
Monte Burke, 09.19.05
Robert Kraft has used business sense and a fan's blind faith to turn the once-laughable New England Patriots into one of the richest franchises in sports.
[...]
He wanted to own not only the team but also its stadium and all the surrounding land. He started by locking up purchase rights to 300 acres around the stadium in Foxboro, Mass. The Sullivan family, founding owners of the Patriots, owned the team and the stadium but not the surrounding land. In 1985 Kraft bought a ten-year option on the property, paying a group of Boston businessmen $1 million a year for first dibs to buy the land someday for $18 million. It was risky, but "the option gave me ten years to try to figure out how to get the team," he says.
In 1986 the Sullivan family put the team up for sale--but held on to the stadium. Kraft passed. "It just didn't feel right, but looking back, I should have bought the team then," he says now. "It was a much more reasonable price." The late Victor Kiam, owner of Remington shavers, picked up the Pats for $87 million. "It was frustrating," Kraft says.
But two years later he snagged the second piece of the puzzle--thanks to singer Michael Jackson. In 1988 Kraft and a partner put up $25 million to buy the Foxboro stadium from the Sullivan family, besting a $16 million offer from the Pats' owner, Kiam. (Kraft would buy out his 50-50 partner for a small premium five years later.) Charles Sullivan had used the stadium as collateral to fund the Jackson brothers' Victory Tour back in 1984. Overleveraged, Sullivan went bankrupt and was forced to sell the arena. To this day Kraft's collection of photos and mementos includes a poster from the ill-fated tour.
By the end of 1988 Kraft had rights to the land, and with the stadium he controlled $2 million a year from parking, concessions and signage. More important, the stadium held an operating covenant that required the Patriots to stay put until 2001. "Now I had 13 years to try to figure out how to get the team."
[...]
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login
By Vincent Bonsignore Staff Columnist
Posted: 09/19/2012 06:55:07 PM PDT
Surprised that Phil Anschutz is selling his AEG sports and entertainment empire?
I'm not.
And if you are a fan of AEG's Farmers Field project and the potential of the NFL returning to downtown Los Angeles, Anschutz's announcement Tuesday is actually good news.
But more on that later.
Not long ago I got a text from a high-ranking official in the National Football League saying he heard Anschutz was running out of patience with the process of bringing an NFL team here to play at Farmers Field.
Essentially, the text explained, Anschutz might want out.
"Will keep my ear to the ground and let you know if I hear anything," the text concluded.
Nothing ever came of it, and after making the necessary calls I was assured that Anschutz was still all in and that AEG's Tim Leiweke, who is spearheading the Farmers Field project, was excited about soon gaining full clearance to begin construction and initiating the process of bringing a team to Los Angeles.
In fact, the NFL official subsequently texted again to say, based on conversations with other league figures, the belief is football will be back in Los Angeles relatively soon.
Then came word Tuesday that Anschutz is selling AEG, which includes Staples Center, the NHL champion Kings, pro soccer's Galaxy, part ownership of the Lakers, and major entertainment and real estate holdings in downtown Los Angeles.
And of course, the privately funded $1.3
billion Farmers Field project.
Just like that, it seemed the NFL returning to downtown L.A. was doomed.
The reality is, this is a good thing for Farmers Field.
Better to find out now, rather than later, Anschutz wasn't fully prepared to emotionally and financially march down the aisle with the NFL.
Better he hand AEG over to someone more local, more energetic and passionate about adding onto the downtown L.A. sports and entertainment kingdom he helped create more than a decade ago - someone like Patrick Soon-Shiong, the richest man in Los Angeles and a rabid sports fan already being mentioned as a potential buyer.
This is all about timing.
It's well-established Farmers Field is primarily a Leiweke dream, with the reclusive, Denver-based Anschutz promising his financial support but always a bit skeptical.
It's also no secret the 73-year-old Anschutz isn't keen on making a long-term commitment to owning all or part of the team moving to Los Angeles, a key and necessary aspect relative to the NFL.
Anschutz is a real estate guy, buying and developing land to eventually sell. The NFL is all about ownership consistency and stability. The relationship could have worked, but you get the idea Anschutz might have felt landlocked.
To the surprise of many, Leiweke has marched Farmers Field nearly the length of the field.
And with the project nearly ready to begin construction and the eager NFL ready for Anschutz to take the financial plunge, Anschutz started feeling like an anxious groom on wedding day, not sure he was OK with the commitment he was about to make.
So he thought long and hard and decided the time was right to hand off things to someone else.
And in the process, do right by Los Angeles.
How so?
By selling AEG to a locally based owner whose passion for Los Angeles sports supersedes his own.
Someone fully committed to seeing Farmers Field through while also being supportive of a long-term relationship with the NFL, an assurance the league needs before returning.
And finally, by stepping aside now, mere months before the NFL meets to potentially discuss a team moving here, a new AEG owner should be in place, fully vetted by the NFL and ready to hammer out a deal to bring football back to L.A.
"Someone the NFL is comfortable with, someone with the wherewithal to make this work and make this successful," Leiweke said. "This gives the NFL assurance, and that is critically important."
So while Anschutz stunned everyone with Tuesday's announcement and seemingly pulled the plug on Farmers Field, it's really just a logical next step in the process.
Especially when you consider how convinced the high-ranking NFL official is about pro football returning to Los Angeles, and the excitement in Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones' voice when he told me two weeks ago he was more optimistic than ever L.A. would soon have an NFL team.
Not to mention NFL commissioner Roger Goodell touting Farmers Field last week for the unique game-day experience it will provide while dismissing the notion it won't satisfy the tailgating hopes of L.A. football fans.
Goodell rarely speaks publicly about either of the two local stadium proposals - Farmers Field and Ed Roski Jr.'s City of Industry project - yet there he was practically gushing over the downtown stadium when he had to have an inkling Anschutz was getting antsy and contemplating a sale.
Why did Goodell seem so supportive of Farmers Field if he knew the money man was selling?
Because Goodell probably has a good idea who the new AEG head will be, and is comfortable that, with AEG's current Leiweke-led management team still in place, the process will move along accordingly once the sale is complete.
How fast will a deal go down?
Leiweke said Wednesday he fully expects the new owner to be in place by March when the NFL convenes to talk about a team potentially moving here, if not sooner. He also said the owner will be fully on board with Farmers Field.
By then, it is conceivable an existing team will have applied for relocation - Goodell recently issued a Jan. 1 to Feb. 15 deadline for clubs to express intent to move in time for the 2013 season - and that a deal will be in place in which the new owner buys part or all of the relocating team.
The most likely candidate is the San Diego Chargers, who have an annual escape window from Feb. 1 to April 30 in which they can buy out their lease at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers are struggling at the gate and have waged a decade-long battle to build a new local stadium, to no avail.
Meanwhile, the Rams face an end-of-year ruling by an arbitrator deciding how much it will cost St. Louis to bring the Edward Jones Dome up to necessary standards. If the stadium is not among the top quarter in the NFL by the end of 2014, the Rams can terminate their lease.
The point is two teams are in position to possibly move here by next year.
And with a new AEG owner in place and motivated to make Farmers Field happen, that makes Tuesday's announcement a good thing for Los Angeles.
vincent.bonsignore@dailynews.com
twitter.com/DailyNewsVinny
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login
Unlikely Dynasty
Monte Burke, 09.19.05
Robert Kraft has used business sense and a fan's blind faith to turn the once-laughable New England Patriots into one of the richest franchises in sports.
[...]
He wanted to own not only the team but also its stadium and all the surrounding land. He started by locking up purchase rights to 300 acres around the stadium in Foxboro, Mass. The Sullivan family, founding owners of the Patriots, owned the team and the stadium but not the surrounding land. In 1985 Kraft bought a ten-year option on the property, paying a group of Boston businessmen $1 million a year for first dibs to buy the land someday for $18 million. It was risky, but "the option gave me ten years to try to figure out how to get the team," he says.
In 1986 the Sullivan family put the team up for sale--but held on to the stadium. Kraft passed. "It just didn't feel right, but looking back, I should have bought the team then," he says now. "It was a much more reasonable price." The late Victor Kiam, owner of Remington shavers, picked up the Pats for $87 million. "It was frustrating," Kraft says.
But two years later he snagged the second piece of the puzzle--thanks to singer Michael Jackson. In 1988 Kraft and a partner put up $25 million to buy the Foxboro stadium from the Sullivan family, besting a $16 million offer from the Pats' owner, Kiam. (Kraft would buy out his 50-50 partner for a small premium five years later.) Charles Sullivan had used the stadium as collateral to fund the Jackson brothers' Victory Tour back in 1984. Overleveraged, Sullivan went bankrupt and was forced to sell the arena. To this day Kraft's collection of photos and mementos includes a poster from the ill-fated tour.
By the end of 1988 Kraft had rights to the land, and with the stadium he controlled $2 million a year from parking, concessions and signage. More important, the stadium held an operating covenant that required the Patriots to stay put until 2001. "Now I had 13 years to try to figure out how to get the team."
[...]
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login
my computer is about to meet the trash can. :computer-losy-smiley: