Steelmaker Stelco Holdings Inc. is buying a 40% stake in the professional football and soccer teams in the Canadian city of Hamilton, the latest sports deal for Chief Executive Officer Alan Kestenbaum.
Stelco will acquire minority interests in the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Forge FC, a soccer club competing in the Canadian Premier League, as well as the master lease for Tim Hortons Field, a 23,000-seat stadium that is home to both teams.
Kestenbaum, who is also Stelco’s executive chairman and its second-largest shareholder, is a minority owner in the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed; Stelco did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“We are excited by the growth prospects of both teams and their respective leagues as new media opportunities continue to be embraced and live sports content remains the pre-eminent source of entertainment globally,” Kestenbaum said in a statement Sunday.
He’s also the head of Sports Ventures Acquisition Corp., a blank-check company that went public almost a year ago and is looking for a deal in the sports industry.
The Tiger-Cats returned to play this year after the CFL’s 2020 season was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The team made it to the Grey Cup, the league’s championship game, but lost in overtime to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Stelco is headquartered in Hamilton, Ontario, known as Canada’s steel city.
