Cleveland Browns Sold to Haslam
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Doug Pensinger/Getty Images(CLEVELAND) — The Cleveland Browns have been sold to Jimmy Haslam for over $1 billion, according to league sources.
The Browns have been owned by Randy Lerner since 2002, when he inherited the team from his father Al. Lerner also owns the soccer team Aston Villa in England and has been accused of being more engaged with them than the Browns.
The sale will be completed in two parts, with Haslam first taking controlling interest of the team for more than $700 million. He then will pay over $300 million to finalize the transfer.
Haslam is the CEO of Pilot Flying J, the largest travel center company in North America. He is the brother of Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, who also worked for Flying J before 2003 and again in 2007.
Haslam currently is a minority investor with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Brown’s division rival. However, he is planning to sell the percentage of the Steelers that he owns by the time the deal is officially finalized. The NFL is expected to finalize the deal at its October meeting.
Lerner has been unpopular with Browns fans, and the team has made the playoffs only once since 1999 when it moved from Baltimore.
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