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The original ownership group of the Columbus Crew wasnt looking to sell. Instead, Hunt Sports Group was seeking a local investor to purchase a minority share in the MLS franchise. Once businessman Anthony Precourt began to learn more about the club, though, it was only a matter of time before he could convince Hunt Sports Group to sell the entire franchise. The deal was announced on Tuesday, the day before the leagues annual All-Star game. Precourt Sports Ventures LLC will take over operating rights to the franchise from the company run by Clark Hunt, whose late father Lamar Hunt helped establish the league nearly 20 years ago. "We have all the resources we need to make the Crew increasingly relevant locally and nationally, stronger financially and more competitive on the field," Precourt said. "Im going to take this job extremely seriously. It has really consumed me, and trust me, Ive had many sleepless nights over the past few months, thinking about and dreaming about our future together." The Crew, which won the MLS Cup in 2008, was one of the charter members of the league, and Hunt called it a "bittersweet" day for his family and company. But he also made it clear that Hunt Sports Group will remain active in MLS through its ownership of FC Dallas. "We were initially very taken back by his interest," Hunt said, "but after we got to know Anthony, we concluded that he was the right guy to lead the Columbus Crew." During the early days of Major League Soccer, every team was owned by just a few different groups. But over the years, those teams have slowly taken on more local ownership -- Hunt Sports Group sold the franchise in Kansas City in 2006 -- in an attempt to diversify the league. MLS Commissioner Don Garber said following the dedication of futsal courts in Kansas City, Kan., on Tuesday that the sale of the represented a "great development" for the league. "Its been a long time from our days when we had three owners," Garber said, "and now were soon to have 20 teams and with the exception of the 50 per cent ownership that Phil Anschutz has in Houston, we have one team and one owner, and thats been a goal of this league since 2002." The Crew, the only MLS club in Ohio, has experienced plenty of success since its founding. Along with capturing its first MLS Cup five years ago, it also won the U.S. Open Cup in 2002 and the Supporters Shield for the leagues best regular-season record on three occasions. The club was also groundbreaking in that it opened the first stadium built specifically for an MLS team in 1999. The facility has been used by the U.S. national team for several competitions, and has served as a blueprint for other soccer-specific stadiums across the league. Garber said that Precourt, whose Precourt Capital Management provides investment management services and private equity investing in the energy sector, began to express interest in expanding into the sports and entertainment realm more than a year ago. Precourt was drawn to MLS, and began discussions with Hunt about four months ago on purchasing part of the Columbus franchise. Over time, Precourt became more enamoured of the league. "We werent pressuring them to sell the team," Garber said, "but as discussions proceeded and Anthony got more involved in MLS and did his due diligence, he said, Hey, I want to own all this team, and he was able to convince the Hunt family to sell him 100 per cent interest in the club." Precourt said that while Columbus is "a very healthy franchise," he has plenty of plans to make it even stronger. The club has close to 7,000 season ticketholders and would like to reach 10,000 in the near future. The new ownership will discuss naming rights options, and that hell look at the Crew brand to see if there are ways to make it more exciting. "Ill tell you that were going to be thoughtful and thorough about the decisions we make," Precourt said. "Were not going to make knee-jerk reactions. Our intent is to come in and have it be status quo here for a while and just assess the situation -- learn, ask a lot of questions, and by season end, well start to build our business plan for the following year." Precourt said that while he lives in Northern California, he plans to establish a second home in Ohio and made a promise to Crew fans that he will "by no means be an absentee owner." "This club, and any sports franchise for that matter, should be a sacred community asset. That is how were going to treat the Crew," he said. "Our goal will be to take the Crew to be one of the standard bearers in the league." Jamel Dean Jersey . -- Ken Appleby made 32 saves for his first shutout of the season to lead the Oshawa Generals to a 2-0 win over the Belleville Bulls on Wednesday in Ontario Hockey League action. Vita Vea Youth Jersey . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. http://www.authenticbuccaneerspro.com/Lee-roy-selmon-buccaneers-jersey/ . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. Mike Edwards Womens Jersey .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Mike Evans Womens Jersey . Dusautoir, the former World Player of the Year, sustained a torn bicep playing for Toulouse in the Heineken Cup on Saturday. The flanker, who has played 65 times for France, is expected to be out for up to four months. FLINT, Mich. -- Ex-NFL player Andre Rison, who is accused of violating his probation in a child support case, says he will turn himself in after a judge in Michigan signed an arrest warrant for him.Rison told the Detroit Free Press?that he is a good father and his legal troubles are a big nasty hurdle.Im just tired. Here I am, being looked at like a hardcore criminal. ... Im trying to do the right thing, Rison told the newspaper. My mistake was made years ago, and Im still under this microscope. Its very frustrating.The warrant signed Tuesday by a federal judge says Rison recently tested positive for marijuana and failed to keep up with minimum support payments. Rison saidd he has used marijuana candy to deal with post-NFL injuries.ddddddddddddI hurt every day, he said.Rison was a star Michigan State receiver and played for seven NFL teams from 1989 to 2000. He has lately been a high school coach in Flint and Ann Arbor.In 2013, the Flint native was ordered to pay at least $1,000 a month toward a total of $300,000 in restitution.Rison told the Free Press he makes $9,000 per year as an assistant coach and collects $3,300 per month in disability benefits from the NFL.The Associated Press contributed to this report. ' ' '