Bengals owner Mike Brown told The Enquirer that the team has no intentions to depart when its lease at Paul Brown Stadium expires in 2026.
Brown expressed his dissatisfaction with a Hamilton County politician’s recent comments about the Bengals’ prospective departure during an interview.
“That’s silly talk,” Brown told the Enquirer.
Brown delivered a furious response, beating his desk at times, to recent statements made by Hamilton County Commission president Todd Portune.
It might foreshadow a war of words and legal action as the Bengals and Hamilton County argue over how much stadium maintenance the existing contract demands from county taxpayers — and as both sides begin negotiations to extend the lease beyond 2026.
In November, amidst speculation about the construction of a soccer stadium, Portune held a press conference in which he hinted that the Bengals would not be around after 2026.
In 1997, the Bengals and Hamilton County agreed to a 30-year lease after voters passed a half-cent sales tax to develop Paul Brown Stadium and Great American Ballpark.
Portune stated in his comments that the Bengals have not signaled that they will quit. However, the county should prepare for the possibility.
“We’re going to work very hard to make sure the Bengals stay in Cincinnati and continue to play at Paul Brown Stadium,” he stated. “In the event those naysayers, those downward looking individuals in terms of our future, that what they’re saying comes to pass, we cannot have, we should not have, a stadium on the riverfront, 65,000 seats, a half a billion dollars in cost, sitting empty without a tenant playing at that facility.”
When confronted about this assertion, Mike Brown characterized Portune’s remarks as political play.
“How the hell would he know whether we’re going to be here or not?” Brown said. “I intend to be here. I stayed here because I had the opportunity to move this team.”
Brown stated that he could have transferred the team for “millions of dollars more” in the 1990s. He stated that he has expressed a desire to remain in Cincinnati.
