Anschutz Entertainment Group, which once owned six of MLS’s 10 clubs, now owns just two (of 13 clubs) following Thursday’s announcement it had sold the Chicago Fire to Andell Holdings, a Los Angeles-based private investment firm with global business and investment interests controlled by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Hauptman.
AEG, which still owns the Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo, had been the Fire’s only owner, launching the club in 1998, when it went on to win the MLS Cup. AEG has sold three teams — D.C. United, the MetroStars and Chicago — for almost $100 million in the last 18 months. It sold the Colorado Rapids, the only club AEG owned when MLS launched in 1996, four years ago.
Colorado Rapids
Sale date: Sept. 2003
New owners: D.C. United Holdings
Price: undisclosed
MetroStars
Sale date: March 2006
New owners: Red Bull
Price: $30 million (estimate)
(In addition to ownership of the club, Red Bull’s deal with AEG includes naming rights for and a 50 percent ownership stake in the team’s new stadium. Red Bull has since bought out AEG’s other 50 percent interest in the stadium.)
D.C. United
Sale date: Jan. 2007
New owners: D.C. United Holdings
Price: $33 million
Chicago Fire
Sale date: Sept. 2007
New owners: Andell Holdings
Price: $30 million (estimate)