As much as the big story around sports teams in the State of Ohio and their stadiums has focused on the Cleveland Browns, the Cincinnati Bengals could vault them in the seriousness department. The Browns are looking to move out of downtown to the Brook Park suburb and build a huge dome stadium and surrounding complex.
We will know more about the final resolution for the orange and brown by the end of June, with shovels in dirt shortly to follow if the Brook Park project is moved forward.
While local leaders like Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne try to use the Art Modell Law to stop the Browns move, Ohio may have a bigger issue with the Bengals lease ending in 2026. Team executive Katie Blackburn noted that they could leave the city after this season:
“We could, I guess, go wherever we wanted after this year if we didn’t pick the up option up,” Blackburn said. “So, you know, we’ll see. Like I said, all these things will be done in due course. We are having discussions, and so we’re hopeful that the county is thinking about it a lot too and wants to get it addressed in a way that would be beneficial to both of us.”
Cincinnati leaders could also look to apply the Modell Law to the Bengals situation but, unlike the Browns, their team doesn’t seem to have a plan in place to move, much less move that quickly. Instead, Blackburn’s comment can be seen as a negotiating tool to try to get Paycor Stadium upgraded with the city, county and state paying for as much as possible.
