Toronto Maple Leafs Sale To Cable Giants Rogers, Bell Approved By NHL

The purchase by the two companies is for 75-percent stake of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd., which owns the Toronto Raptors, Toronto Marlies and the Toronto FC and five television services including Leafs TV.

The CRTC was ruling on the case after competitors of the BCE and Rogers complained the purchase would “create a sports duopoly”.

The NHL also announced that they have approved the restructuring of the ownership of MLSE. MLSE is the parent company of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Toronto Raptors, the Air Canada Centre, the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC.

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MLSE also owns the Toronto Raptors and the Toronto Maple Leafs, among other teams. The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan had previously been the largest stakeholder in the company, but sold its shares for a reported $1.32 billion (Canadian). Rogers already owns the Toronto Blue Jays, something this deal will have no effect on.

“This is a wonderful way of bringing media and content under the same umbrella,” Rogers president Nadir Mohamed said at the news conference on Friday.Toronto FC has long been considered one of the smaller parts of the MLSE empire, something that price tag should pretty well illustrate. Still, the company has been largely criticized for its inability to bring winning teams to almost any of their franchises, something which Toronto FC illustrates perfectly.

Imagine for a moment that Verizon and AT&T combined together to purchase the New York Yankees.

This is even more awkward. Verizon and AT&T don’t own television and radio stations, and they certainly don’t own stations that are dueling to purchase the rights to broadcast games featuring the teams they just purchased together. They don’t own literally the entire media landscape of a country.

The current majority owner, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, had said as recently as two weeks ago that they would not be selling their 79.53 percent share in the company, but a recent offer from the two cable giants apparently changed their tune.

MLSE is the parent company of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Toronto Raptors, the Air Canada Centre, the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC.

It’s easy to see why Teachers’ is hanging on, and it’s the same reason why so many other suitors were interested in the controlling portion of MLSE. The company is a big time money maker, and with the Maple Leafs in particular starting to play better hockey, and with the playoffs a legitimate possibility for the first time in years, the opportunity isn’t going anywhere.

In addition to the Leafs and Raptors, MLSE also controls the Air Canada Centre, Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC, the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and several properties in the Greater Toronto Area.

Part of the interest certainly comes from the fact that MLSE is a company with ridiculously valuable assets such as the Leafs, but the investment firm seems interested also in the potential. Via the Star report:

In the case of an offer made by the Providence, R.I.-based company, current MLSE minority owner Larry Tanenbaum would have the right to match. Of course, the ongoing NBA lockout and the uncertainty with the NHL’s labor situation a year from now is likely to complicate all matters.

It was rumored on Wednesday morning that the OTPP was in negotiations to sell that 66 percent stake to Rogers Communications or perhaps another group.

For more, visit our appropriately named Leafs blog, Pension Plan Puppets.

According to a report by the Financial Post, however, that deal is far from done, and other suitors could be in the mix.

BCE is short for Bell Canada Entertainment, the chief rival of Rogers. Ironically, BCE was almost purchased by the OTPP back in 2007, but the global financial crisis led to the downfall of that deal. Now, the shoe could be on the other foot in terms of one of Teachers’ biggest assets.