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#1945863 05/20/22 07:57 PM
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Cleveland councilman issues another call to remove FirstEnergy's name from Browns stadium
Eric Marotta, Akron Beacon Journal
Fri, May 20, 2022, 6:27 PM


A Cleveland lawmaker is calling for FirstEnergy Corp.'s name to be removed from the city's stadium in a resolution he plans to introduce to Cleveland City Council.

Ward 16 Councilman Brian Kazy is asking council to urge FirstEnergy to relinquish naming rights for the Cleveland Browns, which the company has had for nearly 10 years.

FirstEnergy has been a corporate partner of the Browns since 1999, when its city-owned stadium was built. The company became the team's naming rights sponsor in 2013, when the 68,000-seat Cleveland Browns Stadium was renamed FirstEnergy Stadium. The deal is worth $102 million over 17 years.

Last year, FirstEnergy agreed to a $230 million penalty for bribing former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and Sam Randazzo, former chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.


The scheme involved having the Ohio Legislature pass House Bill 6, a $1 billion bailout for two nuclear plants owned by FirstEnergy Solutions, among other benefits to the company.

"Simply, I don’t believe that the municipally-owned stadium that the Cleveland Browns play in should bear the name of this tainted company," Kazy said in a release. "The sign, seen as people enter Cleveland, gives the impression that they represent the city. This is false."


The resolution reads as follows:

“This Council believes that First Energy applied political pressure using phony citizen groups and paid out significant dollars to restrict or destroy Cleveland Public Power and to influence or control this Council,” the resolution states. “That First Energy continues to market itself using the public’s taxpayer-funded stadium signifies its failure to fully acknowledge its criminal behavior and unintentionally implies community support for a criminal enterprise.”

In response, the Browns organization said FirstEnergy "has been a dedicated partner to the Cleveland Browns, not only on naming rights of the stadium but also on our efforts to improve the lives of many members of the Northeast Ohio community through our youth football and education initiatives."

The football team said FirstEnergy has "taken meaningful action" to address the bribery scandal "and are committed to upholding a culture of integrity and accountability by installing the appropriate policies and procedures going forward."

The team also said FirstEnergy is a "significant regional employer and strong contributor to the economy of Northeast Ohio, and we remain committed to our relationship and look forward to our continued partnership.”

Kazy is not the first to call on the city to drop its association with FirstEnergy.

Last year, Ohio 15th Congressional District Rep. Jeffrey Crossman, D-Parma, and 8th District Rep. Kent Smith, D-Euclid, asked Browns managing partners and Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson to drop their association with the company.

In response to Kazy's proposed resolution, Jennifer Young, FirstEnergy manager of external communications, reissued a statement the company made in response to the letter by Crossman and Smith.

She said the company "has a longstanding commitment to supporting communities through sponsorship of civic, athletic and arts organizations."

"We have taken swift action to address events that have occurred over the past year and to ensure a culture of strong ethics, integrity and accountability at the company," she added. "We look forward to continuing as a valued partner with all the communities in which we live and work."


https://www.yahoo.com/news/cleveland-councilman-issues-another-call-204550951.html

I'd forgotten about the bribery thing. Gotta say, I found a certain civic pride in knowing the stadium was named for the team and town, instead of some soulless corporate entity.


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Anyone who doesn't know what is in a name, just doesn't know what they don't know.

What is in thread titles that fit.


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Greed, power, corruption the foundations of politics.

1st energy bribes officials there is always a starting point. Pockets get full - quid pro quo.

Not a new term. What's in the color orange? mmm oh that guy.

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I guess I wasn't paying attention to just how long the Browns franchise was tied up with the name and link to 'First Energy'. It looks like the Browns franchise signed a 17 year deal in 2013...and that translates until the year 2030.

I just assumed that the bribery case and verdict would automatically be reason enough to push the Browns franchise to find a suitable partner for the stadium naming rights...guess I was wrong!




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Originally Posted by Clemdawg
Cleveland councilman issues another call to remove FirstEnergy's name from Browns stadium

I'd forgotten about the bribery thing. Gotta say, I found a certain civic pride in knowing the stadium was named for the team and town, instead of some soulless corporate entity.


I did too, but it is what it is. Sponsorship in all forms of sports has followed NASCAR on that one. At least it hasn't gotten to the point we don't have the First Energy Browns or the Ford Lions.

I suppose that if we wanted Cleveland stadium, the city or county would have to pony up money for the rights, or when helping to build a new stadium have naming rights built in to the deal. If not, you end up with First Energy, Progressive, and Rocket Mortgage attached.


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j/c

I certainly like the idea of the stadium being named after the team. But is that really the point here? To me the point is that First Energy felt compelled to pay a huge settlement because they bribed state officials. That's government and corporate corruption on the highest level. Something most everyone says they hate on every level in both parties. How can you expect people to look at you as being above board when you make excuses as to why you insist to continue to be in a business partnership with such a corporation?

Let's face it corporate naming rights are a part of the NFL. It brings in millions every year. You can't really expect teams not to do that. But what you can do is expect them not to lay in bed with the pigs and get mud all over them in the process. The Browns made every excuse in the book to continue to do business with a corporations who bribed elected government officials. It's not like there aren't other corporations with a lot less baggage to do business with. Choices have consequences..... sometimes.


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How would y'all feel about a Packers/public set-up in Cleveland. Would you care town The Land to whatever degree of the franchise? Hard to compete with, much less match, the hard dollars of big corp that naming rights command (demand?) I'd be in for shares maybe.


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Originally Posted by Bard Dawg
How would y'all feel about a Packers/public set-up in Cleveland. Would you care town The Land to whatever degree of the franchise? Hard to compete with, much less match, the hard dollars of big corp that naming rights command (demand?) I'd be in for shares maybe.

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But as most everybody knows, a publicly owned team has been disallowed by the NFL for many years now. Green Bay was grandfathered in as the only team under such ownership.


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Thanks, 'Peen. I apologize for suggesting what I found as attractive and seemingly works in GB; I didn't know the NFL has disallowed the practice, much less that it has done so for years. But I do believe some crusading politicians might find some way to get around it if they feel that pro sports had been too favorably disposed. What an interesting "love triangle" those negotiations could prove to be: Open warfare for franchise privileges and self-serving concerns between the NFL and its owners, politicians with this agenda, corporation naming rights dollars, and locals. I like your post Frank Z! I would love it.
I feel this because our club "lost" its decent Dawg Pound seats we enjoyed on our annual visit. We were told that "the entire stadium is now the Dawg Pound" and that the seats behind the end zone had been re-assigned for business priority, I believe. Are we not closer to monopoly denying public ownership, or local control, in some part to some degree? Must not be enough cash to go around. I still favored the idea, still do to be clear. I feel fans finish last much too often.
It was simple ignorance on my part, the end of which I am most capable. I still find a lot of GB merit as a best practice model.


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I might like it as well, but I understand why the league needs and wants at minimum a majority owner. I think in most or all cases it is a large majority owner. I think the league wants that as well. That way there is somebody they can hold to the fire so to speak if things go south with the team....like what is happening in Washington.

It isn't feasible to fine or suspend a board of directors or 10,000 share holders. There really needs to be 1 owner of record and not just a corporation of individual share holders.

And hey, no need to apologize. If you didn't know, you didn't know.

Last edited by Ballpeen; 05/22/22 12:29 PM.

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Thanks, 'Peen. I didna know. And I will point out that we are talking naming rights. The politics and optics of that name don't ride well with me given Ohio scandal, and, I hope I have this in my memory bank properly, the stadium is municipally owned. So that politics leg I mentioned is in play if this is some blowback from that debacle. We can hold our franchise noses; their money spends alright. Taking the high road at night wearing blinders full steam ahead. FWIW.


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What’s the new one going to be? Sherwin Williams Stadium? Cleveland Clinic Field?


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Yosemite Sam Stadium!


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