Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. is not for sale, the shareholders of the Toronto company said yesterday.
The private sports consortium "in whole or in part is not for sale," said Steve Stavro, chairman and controlling shareholder.
Maple Leaf Sports, a private company owned by MLG Holdings Ltd. and the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board, owns and operates the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League, the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association and the Air Canada Centre sports arena in Toronto. The company is valued at more than $1-billion.
The denial follows a weekend news report that said Mr. Stavro was seeking a buyer for at least part of his 31-per-cent stake in the sports company.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team and the NHL's Montreal Canadiens are both in play. Rogers Communications Inc. of Toronto has confirmed it is interested in acquiring the Blue Jays from Belgian brewer Interbrew SA. Analysts speculate a number of media and communications companies may be interested in acquiring the Canadiens, a list that includes Rogers, CanWest Global Communications Corp. and BCE Inc.