… back to Ohio

The recent announcement that Austin will likely be the recipient of a Major League Soccer expansion team makes the legal wrangling in Ohio over the fate of the Columbus Crew franchise decidedly less high-stakes, at least as it concerns the proposed construction of a 20,000-seat soccer stadium on city property in North Austin. Still, last week’s decision by an Ohio judge provides lots of legal wiggle room for Precourt Sports Ventures, owners of the Crew, in its attempt to relocate the team to Austin. Judge Jeffrey Brown’s decision was that the state’s “right to buy” opportunity for a local group to buy and keep the Crew in Ohio doesn’t equate to a right of first refusal for the local interests. Austin Sports Law has an in-depth look at the finer points of the ruling. Here in Austin, PSV and the city are still in negotiations to finalize the lease agreement for the McKalla Place property. City Council approved the basic term sheet for that agreement in August on a 7-4 vote, and now it appears the Austin team will make its debut in 2021.