The sale of the Cleveland Browns has officially been completed per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Per Schefter, the official amount of the transaction between Randy Lerner and Jimmy Haslam is in excess of $1 Billion. This amount is significantly higher than the $920 million which was originally reported Forbes magazine.
Per Schefter, the team will been sold in two different phases, the first being a $700 million sale will help Haslam obtain controlling interest of the team, as first reported by WKYC’s Jimmy Donovan. At a subsequent date, reportedly on the fourth anniversary of the closing date, the two parties will finalize the ultimate sale of the team, ultimately removing Lerner from the fold.
Haslam’s approval as an owner, by the NFL finance committee and other league owners, is essentially a formality at this point. The deal, when finalized, will be the fourth-most lucrative team sale in sports history. In 1998, Al Lerner paid $530 million to aid in the Browns returning to Cleveland. Upon his passing, the team was inherited by his son, Randy.
[Related: So Jimmy Haslam Could Invest in the Browns?]
