TORONTO: Rogers Communications Inc. has completed its $4.35-billion purchase of the remaining 25 per cent stake in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, giving the telecommunications company full ownership of the parent of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC and Toronto Argonauts, The Canadian Press reported Thursday.
The stake was held by Kilmer Sports Inc., the investment vehicle of Canadian businessman Larry Tanenbaum. The transaction closed on Oct. 1, according to the CP report carried by Global News. Rogers first announced the agreement on July 6, when it said the deal would close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to league approvals.
The purchase ends a roughly two-year consolidation of one of the most valuable sports holdings in the country. Rogers closed a deal in July 2025 to buy BCE Inc.’s 37.5 per cent stake in MLSE, which raised its ownership to 75 per cent and made it the majority owner. With Tanenbaum’s stake now in its hands, no outside partner remains in the company that also owns Scotiabank Arena.
Rogers chief executive Tony Staffieri has described full ownership as a defining moment for the company. “Our full ownership of MLSE brings together Canada’s premier communications company with Canada’s premier sports and entertainment organization,” Staffieri said when the deal was announced in July.
In a statement tied to the closing, Staffieri said Rogers is committed to the teams’ success on the ice, court and field. “We know how much these teams mean to fans and we are fully committed to investing to build championship-calibre teams,” he said.
Rogers executive chair Edward Rogers also addressed fans directly. “Sports fans invest their time, passion and dreams. Their investment is personal and so is our responsibility,” he said.
According to the CP report, Rogers plans to create a business unit called Rogers Sports that would bring together its sports assets, which include MLSE and the company’s national hockey broadcast rights. The company has said the combined sports portfolio is valued at more than $25 billion, and it intends to explore selling minority stakes in that business by mid-2027.
That plan is the key detail for investors. Rogers has said before that it believes its sports assets are underappreciated by the market, and a standalone sports unit with outside investors would give it a way to show their value and raise capital. Rogers has not said how large any minority stake would be or who the buyers might be.
For fans, the change in ownership does not alter who runs the teams day to day. MLSE has not announced changes to its leadership as a result of the closing. Rogers has said the teams will continue to operate from Toronto.
The deal also gives Rogers tighter control over how games are packaged, sold and distributed across its media platforms. The company already holds the national NHL broadcast rights in Canada, which it extended in 2025, and owns the Sportsnet network that carries many of the teams’ games.
The Canadian Press reported the news Thursday afternoon, with an update later in the day. Sportcal and other outlets also reported the completion of the takeover, confirming Rogers now holds 100 per cent of MLSE.
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Via The Canadian Press / Global News: Rogers completes purchase of Kilmer’s MLSE stake.
