As the Cleveland Browns move forward with their attempt to leave Cleveland, the city is taking the battle to court.
According to WKYC, the city of Cleveland has filed a lawsuit over the Browns’ plans to move to a new stadium in nearby Brook Park after their current lease at Huntington Bank Stadium expires following the 2028 NFL season.
In the lawsuit filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, Cleveland cites the “Modell Law,” which was passed in the Ohio General Assembly in 1996 after the original Browns moved to Baltimore, where they became the Ravens. The statute states that no professional sports team that uses a tax-supported facility for the majority of its home games can stop playing most of its home games at the facility and begin playing most of its home games elsewhere unless the team’s owner reaches an agreement with the political subdivision to do so or makes the team available for purchase after providing proper notice.
“The Modell Law, enacted in response to the Browns’ 1995 attempt to relocate to Baltimore, prevents team owners from exploiting public investment and protects Ohio taxpayers from losing professional sports teams that play in publicly funded facilities,” the city wrote in its release regarding the lawsuit, according to WKYC. “At the request of the Browns and the NFL, the City of Cleveland’s taxpayers have spent hundreds of millions to support the Browns and to build a world-class lakefront.”
The lawsuit also points out the irony in the Browns’ owners, the Haslam family, previously using the Modell Law to purchase the Columbus Crew in 2019.
“Browns ownership violated legal obligations by failing to notify or offer Cleveland a chance to purchase the team. Despite significant taxpayer investment in Huntington Bank Field, ownership is pursuing a new stadium in Brook Park, disregarding the law and their commitments,” the lawsuit states.
Meanwhile, the Browns previously filed their own lawsuit in federal court challenging the Modell Law.
At the time, the team said it wasn’t interested in engaging in a contentious legal battle.
Nevertheless, that’s exactly where the team and city appear to have wound up.
[WKYC]
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.