Chicago is My Home

13
May

Tribune Co.’s Sam Zell Plans to Sell Chicago Cubs, Wrigley Field Together

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business

CHICAGO – Chicago’s Tribune Co. has rejected a proposed plan from the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority (ISFA) to buy Wrigley Field and will offer the Chicago Cubs and its diamond as a package deal, according to Tuesday reports by the Chicago Sun-Times and the Associated Press.

Tribune Co. CEO Sam Zell spent months exploring options to sell Wrigley Field and its baseball team separately. The ISFA’s $400 million offer for the stadium was turned down, however, due to concerns over an unusual ticket sales process that might violate Internal Revenue Code (IRC) and Major League Baseball (MLB) rules.

The ISFA proposal called for the sale of long-term rights to the best seats at Wrigley Field.

Such an arrangement would make the Cubs less attractive to suitors, however, as it would reduce the ticket revenue of the team’s new owner. Cubs Chairman Crane Kenney told the Associated Press that Tribune Co. will pursue selling the team and the park together and will release a descriptive memorandum to potential buyers in the next two weeks.

By Megan O’Neil