An article this week in the Cleveland Plain Dealer broke the news that the club was up for sale. Everyone knows that there has been struggles on and off the field this season, but this came as a surprise to many. No official statement has been given by the club; the topic was revealed to the reporter during an interview with Dr. Aaron Tredway, who serves as Executive Director of the City Stars.
The article focused on the negative aspects of the situation, but some see it as an opportunity for a rebirth of the club. Sources close to the organization suggest that there are at least three groups interested in purchasing the USL-1 franchise. Two appear to be local business owners, while another is a well-known investor with connections to international soccer, but with close ties to the Cleveland area. This unnamed party could infuse significant funds into a club that had a limited budget and payroll.
This is not a group led by Drew Carey, who was reportedly interested in a Cleveland soccer franchise earlier this year. A source with Seattle Sounders FC, where Carey owns a share of the team, confirmed that no investor from his organization has had talks regarding the purchase of the Cleveland club.
We are in the process of devloping a feature story on this topic to be released to the public on Wednesday, August 19th.
