Former chief executive officer and president of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Tim Leiweke has been indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly orchestrating a conspiracy to rig the bidding process for an arena at a public university in Austin, Texas.
Leiweke, the co-founder of sports and real estate company Oak View Group (OVG), is charged with a violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, facing a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1-million US fine.
According to the DOJ, Leiweke told colleagues a rival company was “bidding against us” and expressed a desire to “get them to back down” — a goal he later achieved through a 2018 agreement under which the competitor didn’t submit a bid and instead received subcontracts, leaving OVG as the lone qualified bidder.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
OVG and Legends Hospitality have agreed to pay $15 million and $1.5 million in penalties, respectively, related to the conduct outlined in the indictment.
In a statement that did not mention Leiweke, OVG said it “co-operated fully with the Antitrust Division’s inquiry” and was “pleased to have resolved this matter with no charges filed against OVG and no admission of fault or wrongdoing.”
Leiweke was head of MLSE from 2013 to 2015 before moving on to OVG. The company operates dozens of venues across North America, including Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, London, Ont.’s Canada Life Place and Hamilton’s recently renovated TD Coliseum.
