Make The Competition Disappear

A bid-rigging indictment calls foul on Tim Leiweke, a long-respected sports arena developer

“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.” – John Wooden

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Throw the fight, fix the game, rig the arena – sports has always been a scam, especially on taxpayers who collectively spend billions building venues only to find they’re priced out of a decent seat

A federal grand jury indictment returned last week against one the industry’s most visionary deal-makers offers a nauseating peak under the circus tent.

• First, at 68, Tim Leiweke has had a long and lauded career as a sports and entertainment venue developer. In 2015, he formed Greenwood Village, Colo.-based Oak View Group with Irving Azoff – a music industry legend who was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2020 and has managed the Eagles, U2, Harry Styles and other top acts.

• Second, Leiweke denies the charge. He’s accused of rigging the bid for the taxpayer-funded Moody Center at the Austin campus of the University of Texas. Oak Tree emerged as the only qualified bidder and won the contract. The arena opened in 2022 and Oak Tree draws significant revenue from it to this day.

• Third, this is serious. Leiweke faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

Is this any way to end a stellar career?

“Abracadabra. Alakazam. You are now the sole bidder, Mr. Man.” (Illustration credit: ChatGPT.)

Leiweke’s career highlights include serving as president of the Denver Nuggets NBA team and CEO of MLSE, which owns the Toronto’s NHL Maple Leafs and NBA Raptors. In 1996, he went to work for Denver multibillionaire Phillip Anschutz as CEO of Anschutz Entertainment Group. In that role, he transformed downtown Los Angeles by developing the landmark Staples Center and the L.A. Live entertainment complex.

Now that Leiweke is in the penalty box, the fallout has been enormous. He has stepped down as CEO of his company, which employs more than 50,000 people and manages 400 arenas. The company’s significant Moody Center revenue is in jeopardy and Louisiana State University is putting the brakes on plans for a new $400 million venue where Oak View is a top contender for the project.

A company spokesperson released a statement saying Leiweke had “done nothing wrong and will vigorously defend himself and his well-deserved reputation for fairness and integrity.” But it does not look good considering that Oak View has already agreed to pay a $15 million fine without admitting guilt or wrongdoing.

This is no way to win. The competition may have forfeited the game, but for now it looks like Leiweke has forfeited his “well-deserved reputation for fairness and integrity.”