Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslams want to add to their sports holdings, but they won't include the Cleveland Indians -- for now. (TLOD)
Browns owner Jimmy Haslam wants to increase sports holdings, but Cleveland Indians are not a target
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
Takeaways from Day 4 of Browns training camp …
Flushed with cash and looking to add to his burgeoning Haslam Sports Group holdings, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam would seem a logical minority partner for cash-strapped Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan.
But a business marriage of the two most prominent Cleveland sports team owners isn’t in the cards.
Haslam said Saturday that he has explored “a lot” of opportunities the last two years, but he has not researched investing in the Indians.
“No, we have not,” Haslam said. “We have not talked to Paul. Paul is a great friend and has done a great job with the Indians, but we have not talked about that.”
And yet, Haslam admits it makes sense for Haslam Sports Group, which includes the Browns and Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer, to concentrate holdings in the state of Ohio.
In September of 2020, Sportico reported Haslam Sports Group showed interest in buying the NBA Minnesota Timberwolves. At the time, HSG issued a statement saying the report was inaccurate.
But on Saturday, Haslam said, “We have looked at a lot of different opportunities over the last year or two.”
In April, the Timberwolves and the WNBA Minnesota Lynx were sold to a group headed by former MLB player Alex Rodriquez for a reported $1.5 billion. Rodriguez’s group is expected to take control of the franchises in 2023.
The Haslams are poised to expand their sports holdings.
In 2018, Haslam executed a two-pronged sale of his family-owned truck stop chain and fuel business, Pilot Travel Centers, to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. In the initial transaction, Berkshire paid a reported $2.76 billion for a 38.6 percent stake in Haslam’s company. Berkshire’s stake reportedly increases to 80 percent in 2023, which could mean another $3 billion to the Haslams.
I asked the Haslams if his family attention then would turn to adding to its sports holdings.
Dee Haslam, CEO of Haslam Sports Group, said, “We have our hands full right now. I think that is what we are focused on right now ... the Crew and the Browns. That is a lot right now. I do not know what is down the road, but that is definitely our focus.”
Jimmy Haslam said, “We still will own 20 percent of Pilot, so we will still have a fairly significant stake in it, and it will always be part of our lives, to be honest. Listen, we like sports and we like business. Dee said it right. We feel like we have both the Crew and the Browns in a good place here, but we need to make sure that happens before we add anything else.”
Haslam entered sports ownership with a 12.5 percent stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008. In 2012, he purchased the Browns from the Lerner Family Trust for a reported $1.005 billion. On Jan. 1, 2019, the Haslams headed a group to purchase the MLS Columbus Crew and save it from leaving Ohio’s capital city. In 2020, the Crew won the MLS Cup. This month, the Crew christened a new, $230 million stadium in downtown Columbus.
Now the Browns are considered Super Bowl contenders and the Haslams are expanding their horizons in Northeast Ohio. They are actively involved in long-range planning for development of the lakefront behind FirstEnergy Stadium and beyond, and are investing heavily again in their headquarters facilty in Berea.
The Browns recently announced a sponsorship deal to rename their headquarters Cross Country Mortgage Campus, and have ambitious plans to expand the footprint of the complex. They have purchased and razed more than a dozen properties on Pearl Street adjacent to their practice fields.
Possible plans include expanding the indoor fieldhouse to a full 100-yard field, further expansion of the team’s offices and improving the fan experience at training camp.
“The first goal is to make it even better for the players and the coaches and everybody who works here, the second is to make it better for the fans and the third is to help this community,” Haslam said. “I think we have a chance to do all that. We do not have concrete plans right now. Obviously, we would like this campus to be part of the Browns for a long, long time to come. I will just reiterate what I said. We are excited about what this can be over the next several years.”
Brownie bits
Jimmy Haslam’s official statement on expectations for the 2021 season: “With our record the previous few years, we are realistic with how hard it is to win in the NFL. I think Dee and I are very realistic about the role injuries play, breaks, etc. and just how hard it is to win in the NFL. We are excited that people are mentioning us the way they are, but we are also realistic about how much work we have to do and how hard it is to win in the NFL.” …
Haslam said that chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta received a five-year contract extension last year, tying him to the contracts of coach Kevin Stefanski and GM Andrew Berry. It was DePodesta, as the point man in the coach and GM search committees in 2020, that wedded Stefanski and Berry to form the dream football operations alignment that has eluded Haslam since 2013. “Paul is going to be with us for a significant amount of time,” Haslam said …
Kicker Cody Parkey had a good comeback after missing 4 of 5 field goals on Thursday. Parkey made all six of his kicks tween 30 and 43 yards. Challenger Chase McLoughlin was good on his first five but missed from 43 yards …
Defensive end Takk McKinley had his second bout in two days with dehydration. McKinley left practice on Friday and had to leave early on Saturday after being sick on the field …
Safety Ronnie Harrison was the notable player who missed practice for something other than “camp management.” Harrison tweaked a hamstring on Friday …
How’s new defensive end Jadeveon Clowney doing? From defensive line coach Chris Kiffin: “All I know from Jadeveon is what I’ve seen and he looks awesome, looks healthy, in good spirits, attentive in meetings. Everything we’ve asked of him he’s done. I think he’s very motivated, very excited. He’s already said it, he feels real comfortable here. He’s in a great spot and he looks like it.”
