COLUMBUS — The Columbus Crew today issued the following statement in regard to media reports about the organization’s status within the Hunt Sports Group:
With respect to recent media reports and commentary relating to the future of the Columbus Crew, the Hunt family is firmly committed to the Crew organization in Columbus. In June 2010, Hunt Sports Group announced it would pursue additional investors in the Crew to strengthen the current local investor group that has been part of the club since its inception. HSG also stated that any new investors must align with the Hunts’ long-term vision for Major League Soccer in Columbus.
“The City of Columbus, the Crew and Crew Stadium are extremely important to our family, and that hasn’t changed,” said Clark Hunt, Chairman of Hunt Sports Group. “We continue to believe that additional local investment only serves to strengthen the Crew’s standing in Columbus and Major League Soccer, and over the past two years, we have openly explored the possibility of bringing in minority investors to the club. In an attempt to emphasize the importance of identifying additional investors in the Crew, Commissioner Garber’s recent comments overstated this objective. He has since clarified his statement through a league spokesperson.
As we have said previously, adding local investors, reaching our goal of 10,000 season ticket holders, securing a naming rights partner for Crew Stadium and boosting support from the business community are all critical factors in the long-term success of the Crew in Columbus. From our family’s perspective, our objectives have not changed since we made this original announcement.”
