SportingNews reports on sale of Toronto Maple Leafs

According to SportingNews.com analysis of an article originally published by LaPresse in Montreal, the Ontario Teachers Pension Fund may be about make an announcement regarding sale of their majority ownership position in Maple Leaf sports and Entertainment, owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, the Air Canada Centre and soccer's Toronto FC.

The Teachers’, which owns 66% of MLSE, has reportedly hired the investment bank Morgan Stanley to help in its efforts to offload its shares. A December report by the Financial Post indicated those shares being valued at close to $1-billion, though La Presse‘s findings suggest Teachers’ is looking to sell its stake for $1.3-billion. That figure is nearly identical to the price Rogers Communications was reportedly willing to pay in December, before those sale rumours were squashed.

Rogers already owns the Toronto Blue Jays, their stadium, the Rogers Centre, and the Sportsnet television network.

The remaining MLSE shareholders include Larry Tanenbaum, the group’s chairman, who holds a 20.5% stake, and TD Capital, with a 13.5% stake, both of which hold rights of first refusal. The Financial Post previously reported Tanenbaum as a potential suitor for the ownership group.

Sporting News article on sale of Toronto Maple Leafs

National Post story on Toronto Maple Leafs being sold

Sources: SportingNews.com, NationalPost.com