What is the real reason billionaire Philip Anschutz terminated the sale of AEG, the holding company that counts the NHL's Los Angeles Kings, Staples Center, and O2 World in Berlin among its prized assets?
When Anschutz took AEG off the market in mid-March the company's official press release made it seem like the sports and entertainment titan didn't get the right price from the right buyer. Later that same day Anschutz told the L.A. Times he terminated the sale because it had "become a very noisy process."
That struck me as a rather strange reason for a guy like Anschutz to pull the plug -- he had Peter Cohen of Blackstone handling the sale (yes, the same gentleman that ran the incredibly successful sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers for Frank McCourt). I mean, did Anschutz actually think that the sale of AEG for perhaps $10 billion would be done via a cone of silence? Especially one that potentially involved a new NFL stadium? Give me a break.
Stranger still, as far as I was concerned, was the reason Anschutz gave for AEG CEO Tim Leiweke's departure: "I think he made his decision based on the fact that I had terminated the process for the sale." Huh?
Here is one of the most powerful and toughest businessmen in the country, a guy who just got out of the hospital from back surgery, saying no mas because the sale process got noisy and he is not sure why his most important employee (who was absent from the conference call) at AEG is bolting? I don't think so.
Here is what I have been hearing from people very close to the situation who would only speak off the record: Anschutz got wind that Leiweke was trying to influence the choice of a buyer for AEG. Anschutz became infuriated and fired him and ended the sale. Makes sense. Why wouldn't Leiweke want to have a say in who bought AEG given he was hoping to stay on? Trouble is Anschutz asked Leiweke to make sales presentations, not try to determine the winner.
Leiweke has a terrific reputation as a salesman. But he may have been too aggressive for Anschutz. Calls I made to AEG and Leiweke over the past couple of days were not returned.
