Browns Hit Major Snag In New Stadium Plans

The Cleveland Browns may have run into a roadblock with their plans for a new stadium.

Aug 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam sits on the bench during pregame warmups against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Browns are attempting to build a domed stadium in Brook Park, and early on, it looked like everything was going smoothly.

However, the Browns may have just hit a major snag in their journey: the city of Cleveland.

Apparently, Cleveland may attempt to prevent the Browns from leaving the city thanks to the "Modell Law," which was instituted after the Browns picked up and moved to Baltimore back in the '90s.

“We’re writing the complaint. We’re talking to our partners and making sure when we move forward, everything is in order. We’re going to follow the law,” said Cleveland Law Director Mark Griffin, via Fox 8.

With the Modell Law in effect, someone else would have the chance to buy the Browns to keep the team from moving.

“So, we go to court with the complaint which would require the Browns to permit a six-month window to possibly purchase the Browns,” Griffin added.

It may seem fairly petty, but City Hall insists that the rules must be followed.

"The City is going to follow the law," City Hall said in a statement, via Nick Castele of Signal Cleveland. "Our City ordinances require the city to enforce the Modell Law. That is what we are going to do."

Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 The Fan took to social media to post the part of the Modell Law that the city is attempting to use against the Browns, but he added that a judge should instantly throw it out.

Here’s the text of the Modell law Cleveland is trying to use to force #Browns to stay in the existing stadium. Lease will be fulfilled following 2028 season. Team is free after that. Should take any judge 30 seconds to throw this out… pic.twitter.com/ub5sf3zogw

— Daryl Ruiter (@RuiterWrongFAN) October 23, 2024

The funny thing is, Brook Park is about 20 minutes away from downtown Cleveland, so this shouldn't really be too much of an issue.

But sometimes, legal matters are tricky.

We'll see what developments occur as things progress.