NFL Owners Approve Haslam; Clear To Complete Deal With Lerner
CHICAGO (92.3 The Fan) - NFL owners approved the sale of the Cleveland Browns to Jimmy Haslam III Tuesday morning in Chicago.
Randy Lerner, who inherited the team from his father in October of 2002, announced the deal with Haslam on Aug. 2 and owners voted unanimously Tuesday morning to approve the transaction.
Haslam assumes a 70 percent controlling interest in the team with Lerner retaining a 30 percent stake up till the 4-year anniversary of the closing of the sale. Haslam will then be permitted to purchase the remaining stake in the team.
The total value of the deal is an estimated $1 billion.
Since the announced sale, Haslam has been visible at practice and at every game. His presence has been a welcomed site among players.
The futures of president Mike Holmgren, general manager Tom Heckert and coach Pat Shurmur are in doubt with the change in ownership.
Holmgren did not make the scheduled trip to the meetings. He had been representing Lerner and the franchise on league business since officially taking over as team president in January, 2010.
Former Eagles president Joe Banner is expected to be named the chief executive of the Browns Soon.
Haslam owns a 12 percent minority stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers and he is in the process of divesting his interest in the team.
An arrangement has been worked out the the Steelers as well as NFL prohibiting Haslam’s access to Organizational and business information he was privy to while a minority owner of the team.
With the approval now out of the way, Haslam is clear to complete the deal with Lerner. It’s expected that he will take control of the team by month’s end.
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