Report: Weaver trying to sell Jaguars

[thelakelander]

The Times-Union

The Jaguars had no immediate comment Wednesday night on a Philadelphia Daily News report that team owner Wayne Weaver is negotiating to sell the team to billionaire C. Dean Metropoulos, who could move the team to Los Angeles.

Team spokesman Ryan Robinson said Weaver was traveling on Wednesday and wouldn’t be available until today.

Metropoulos, 61, the former chairman and chief executive officer of New Jersey-based Pinnacle Foods, denied the newspaper’s report.

“I must tell you I haven’t had any such discussions,” Metropoulos was quoted in the Daily News. “I wouldn’t know how to give you any credibility to that because I don’t know anything about it.”

The Daily News reported that discussions between Weaver and Metropoulos are being brokered by Sal Galatioto of the New York sports investment firm Galatioto Sports Partners. The newspaper reported that Metropoulos previously has tried to buy two other NFL franchises â€" the Oakland Raiders and the Miami Dolphins â€" but was unsuccessful.

Metropoulos, according to the report, is interested in a 100 percent purchase of the Jaguars immediately, though unnamed sources told the paper he would keep Weaver on for two years while he learns how to operate an NFL franchise. The sources told the newspaper that Metropoulos would bring in minority partners with him, and that the Jaguars would be a candidate to move to Los Angeles, which is seeking an NFL team.

Weaver has consistently denied any interest in selling in the team, though he acknowledged last year that has was looking for additional investors for the franchise.

The Jaguars, who joined the league in 1995, reached the second round of the AFC playoffs last season, but had three of their eight home games blacked out because they weren’t sold out. They’re consistently mentioned in media reports as a candidate to move to Los Angeles, but Weaver has consistently denied that the team is for sale.

http://news.jacksonville.com/justin/2008/07/09/report-weaver-trying-to-sell-jaguars/

[Steve]

Well, I hope it's not true, but damn that would suck.

I will say this - it may be a bit premature.  What I get is that the Philadelphia Daily News reported that a local Billionaire wants to buy the Jaguars, but no mention of what Weaver responded with.

[copperfiend]

It's not as if Weaver and the team have not admitted that a minority stake in the team may be sold. This is from a Times-Union article from 06/21/2007:

(Jaguars CFO Bill) Prescott also said the Jaguars have put their search for new minority investors on hold until the end of the season. They have hired a New York investment firm, Galatioto Sports Partners, to help them find new investors so they could reduce their $110 million debt.

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/062107/jag_179065644.shtml

I have highlighted the investment firm because the article mentions this firm as possibly brokering their rumored deal. Who is to say that Weaver may not be negotiating to sell a minority share as mentioned in the article from June of last year?

[RiversideGator]

Weaver just stated in the T-U interview that he was not selling the team off.  So, unless he is a huge liar, this must be a false rumor.  Time will tell.  I am hoping on the minority partner instead.  This is certainly not good for ticket sales.

[thebrokenforum]

Holy crap...message boards all over the place are overflowing with people freaking the F out. All kinds of people are coming out of the woodwork to express love/hate for the team.

The national media sure knows how to make Jacksonville dance when it wants to...by shooting "bullets" at its feet. It's freaking really funny, in a sick kind of way, that our own media outlets can do no better than re-report the original story.

[JaxByDefault]

I don't know River, it doesn't look like the potential buyer is interested in being a minority owner. Here is a quote from the Philadelphia Daily News:

Metropoulos is interested in a 100 percent purchase of the Jaguars immediately, though sources indicated he would keep Weaver on for 2 years while he learns how to operate an NFL franchise. The sources said he would bring in minority partners with him, including one in the entertainment business.

If Metropoulos buys the Jags, it probably won't bode well for the city of Jacksonville. The Jaguars, who entered the league as an expansion franchise in 1995, have been one of the teams that have been most often mentioned as a candidate to eventually relocate to Los Angeles. They've struggled for years to sell out their games at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, and Weaver recently laid off several members of his marketing staff to save money.

The full article can be viewed at http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/sports/20080709_Steelers__Jaguars_might_soon_have_new_owners.html

[RiversideGator]

Weaver just stated in the T-U interview that he was not selling the team off.  So, unless he is a huge liar, this must be a false rumor.  Time will tell.  I am hoping on the minority partner instead.  This is certainly not good for ticket sales.

well was it ever certified that Weaver said this?

This sounds a little breathless on your part, River.

I doubt that this is really anything to worry about.

I am referring to piece from a legitimate news outlet.  The statements by Weaver were also in a legitimate news outlet.  No parallel here.

[Steve]

Weaver did say that not too long ago - I remember it as well.

I'll see if I can find it.

[copperfiend]

Even if they are sold, I don't see the team moving. Teams move because of bad stadiums and bad stadium leases. The Jaguars have neither.

[JaxByDefault]

I remember seeing a quote to that effect recently, too. Hopefully, Steve or River can dig it up.

Of course, owners and buyers of professional sports team often do a dance for several months where their comments rarely match their actions, e.g., rumors surrounding the sell of the Nashville Predators, the Seattle Sonics, etc.

I'm a Tennessee Titans fan, but I would hate to see the Jags leave. That would be a major blow to Jacksonville.

[Driven1]

Even if they are sold, I don't see the team moving. Teams move because of bad stadiums and bad stadium leases. The Jaguars have neither.

and bad fan support.  that, the Jags do have.

[Steve]

Dan Hicken from FCN mentioned that Weaver will have a statement in the AM - apparently he is travelling.

Now, even if this turns out to be false, the man is 73.  At some point, this is going to happen.

[thebrokenforum]

Good point about the ticket sales, River. This is a quote from the TU message board:

How can the Jaguars have the [audacity] to launch a major ticket sales campaign and during that same week negotiate the sale of the team to a potential buyer that sees the road to L.A. paved in dollar signs?

There is no stadium in LA. There is no stadium being built in LA...so even if the rumor is true it wouldn't happen for maybe 5 years. The Jags doing the shady, backdoor business deal now and not going public with it here first would single-handedly kill their ticket sales for their remaining stay, not to mention kill off all merchandise sales etc. by pulling a stunt like this.

But who knows? Maybe WW could care less what anyone in this city thinks? It is most definitely going to be a day to remember media-wise tomorrow. Let the games begin...


(and if they did go what does the city's identity become then...bloodstained streets?)

[Driven1]

(and if they did go what does the city's identity become then...bloodstained streets?)

think... Columbia, SC

[Steve]

With that said, as long as a new stadium was on the way, if the Jaguars made a commitment to move to Los Angeles, the other 31 owners would probably help them pack. Remember, in the NFL revenue is shared all over the place, especially with TV contracts.  How much more valuable does the NFL's TV contract become in the #2 media market?

Good point about the ticket sales, River. This is a quote from the TU message board:

How can the Jaguars have the [audacity] to launch a major ticket sales campaign and during that same week negotiate the sale of the team to a potential buyer that sees the road to L.A. paved in dollar signs?

There is no stadium in LA. There is no stadium being built in LA...so even if the rumor is true it wouldn't happen for maybe 5 years. The Jags doing the shady, backdoor business deal now and not going public with it here first would single-handedly kill their ticket sales for their remaining stay, not to mention kill off all merchandise sales etc. by pulling a stunt like this.

But who knows? Maybe WW could care less what anyone in this city thinks? It is most definitely going to be a day to remember media-wise tomorrow. Let the games begin...


(and if they did go what does the city's identity become then...bloodstained streets?)

With that said, as long as a new stadium was on the way, if the Jaguars made a commitment to move to Los Angeles, the other 31 owners would probably help them pack. Remember, in the NFL revenue is shared all over the place, especially with TV contracts.  How much more valuable does the NFL's TV contract become in the #2 media market?