• Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock
Stock

Sports executive charged with bid-rigging in Texas arena project

by July 10, 2025
written by July 10, 2025

Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke was indicted on a federal criminal conspiracy charge related to allegedly rigging a bid to develop, manage, and operate the University of Texas’ basketball and entertainment arena in Austin, the Department of Justice said Wednesday.

Oak View Group, which will pay $15 million in penalties in connection with the allegations, later Wednesday said that Leiweke “will transition from the position of CEO to” vice chairman of the entertainment venue giant’s board of directors, and remain a shareholder.

Leiweke, 68, is accused in the indictment of conspiring with another would-be bidder on UT’s $338 million Moody Center arena project to induce that second company in February 2018 to drop out of the competition with Oak View Group in exchange for receiving lucrative subcontracts at the 15,000-seat arena.

CNBC has been told the second company was Legends Hospitality, a New York-based venue services company that is majority-owned by Sixth Street Partners, and whose minority owners include the New York Yankees and the Dallas Cowboys.

The indictment in U.S. District Court in Austin says that Leiweke later reneged on that promise to the second company after it dropped its effort to bid on the entire project.

“The arena opened to the public in April 2022, and OVG continues to receive significant revenues from the project to date,” the Department of Justice said Wednesday.

Leiweke “rigged a bidding process to benefit his own company and deprived a public university and taxpayers of the benefits of competitive bidding,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, in a statement.

Leweike, in a 2022 interview with CNBC, said that the Moody Center was one of his company’s “two most successful arenas.”

The DOJ also said Wednesday that Oak View Group and Legends agreed to pay $15 million and $1.5 million, respectively, in penalties “in connection with the conduct alleged in the indictment against Leiweke.”

Oak View Group’s website says that the company manages 400 sports, entertainment and other venues.

Lewieke, who is charged with one count of conspiracy to restrain trade, is the former CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. Before that, he served as CEO of Anschutz Entertainment Group.

A spokesman for Leiweke, in a statement to CNBC, said, “Mr. Leiweke has done nothing wrong and will vigorously defend himself and his well-deserved reputation for fairness and integrity.”

“The Antitrust Division’s allegations are wrong on the law and the facts, and the case should never have been brought,” the spokesman said. “The law is clear: vertical, complementary business partnerships, like the one contemplated between OVG and Legends, are legal.”

“These allegations blatantly ignore established legal precedent and seek to criminalize common teaming efforts that are proven to enhance competition and benefit the public. The Moody Center is a perfect example, as it has resulted in substantial and sustained benefits to the University of Texas and the City of Austin.”

Leiweke, in his own statement, said, “While I’m pleased the company has resolved its Department of Justice Antitrust Division inquiry without any charges filed or admission of wrongdoing, the last thing I want to do is distract from the accomplishments of the team or draw focus away from executing for our partners, so the Board and I decided that now is the right time to implement the succession plan that was already underway and transition out of the CEO role.

Oak View Group, in a statement, said, “Oak View Group cooperated fully with the Antitrust Division’s inquiry and is pleased to have resolved this matter with no charges filed against OVG and no admission of fault or wrongdoing.”

“We support all efforts to ensure a fair and competitive environment in our industry and are committed to upholding industry-leading compliance and disclosure practices,” Oak View Group said.

CNBC has requested comment from Legends.

Chris Granger, who was president of Oak View Group’s division OVG360, has been appointed as interim CEO of Oak View Group by the company’s board.

Granger previously was group president for sports and entertainment of the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings, and president and chief operating officer of the Sacramento Kings.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS
0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

previous post
Trump had very unexpected convo with Obama at Carter’s funeral: Book
next post
OpenAI to release web browser in challenge to Google Chrome

related articles

YouTube to pay $24 million to settle Trump...

October 1, 2025

Charlie Javice sentenced to 7 years in prison...

October 1, 2025

Video game maker Electronic Arts to be acquired...

October 1, 2025

Nearly 200,000 BMWs recalled over potential fire risk

September 30, 2025

Trump says U.S. will impose new tariffs on...

September 29, 2025

Former Fed chairs warn that removing Lisa Cook...

September 27, 2025

Amazon to pay $2.5 billion to settle FTC...

September 27, 2025

The charm of watching movies in theaters is...

September 25, 2025

Ben & Jerry’s co-founder resigns, claiming parent company...

September 18, 2025

LimeWire acquires Fyre Festival, asking ‘What Could Possibly...

September 17, 2025
Enter Your Information Below To Receive Free Trading Ideas, Latest News, And Articles.


Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!

Latest News

  • Trump says he ‘would be willing to do more than one debate’ with Vice President Harris

    July 23, 2024
  • Trump delivers ultimatum to Hamas: Accept deal and release hostages or pay the consequences

    September 7, 2025
  • Hegseth, Signal questions dog Waltz as potentially perilous UN ambassador confirmation hearings loom

    May 2, 2025
  • Gold and Silver: Gold moves to a new all-time high of $2670

    September 25, 2024
  • House passes nearly $1 trillion defense spending bill, adding to US debt of $36 trillion

    December 12, 2024

Popular Posts

  • 1

    Secret Service admits leaning on ‘state and local partners’ after claim it ignored Trump team’s past requests

    July 21, 2024
  • 2

    Five more House Democrats call on Biden to drop out, third US senator

    July 19, 2024
  • 3

    Elon and Vivek should tackle US funding for this boondoogle organization and score a multimillion dollar win

    December 4, 2024
  • 4

    Forex Profit Calculator: Maximize Your Trading Potential

    July 10, 2024
  • 5

    Biden calls to ‘lower the temperature’ then bashes Trump in NAACP speech

    July 17, 2024

Categories

  • Economy (829)
  • Editor's Pick (6,247)
  • Investing (634)
  • Stock (935)

Latest Posts

  • Saudis deploy mobile McDonald’s for Trump’s trip to the kingdom

    May 13, 2025
  • Alphabet’s Q2 earnings preview: Revenue set to surge nearly 14% driven by AI and ad market revival

    July 22, 2024
  • Trump DOJ releases ‘thousands’ of Epstein files to House Oversight Committee

    August 22, 2025

Recent Posts

  • Waltz doubles down on Hegseth praise amid ongoing Pentagon controversy

    April 27, 2025
  • Political world reacts to former President Biden’s ‘aggressive’ cancer diagnosis: ‘Incredibly difficult’

    May 18, 2025
  • Ukraine receives US natural gas shipment for the 1st time amid fresh supply fears

    December 31, 2024

Editor’s Pick

  • Trump 1.0 alums share chilling Google message from before second-term return: ‘LAWFARE at its finest’

    August 2, 2025
  • Amazon taps Xbox co-founder to lead new team developing ‘breakthrough’ consumer products

    May 30, 2025
  • Risch proposes bill to block US foreign aid from funding abortions

    January 30, 2025
  • About us
  • Contacts
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Disclaimer: moneyrisetoday.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

Copyright © 2025 moneyrisetoday.com | All Rights Reserved

Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock