Joey Saputo starts CF Montreal sale process without ruling out relocation

CF Montreal owner Joey Saputo announced on Monday that his family is starting a formal process to sell the MLS club, according to reporting by the Guardian. Saputo said he wants the team to remain in Montreal but would not rule out a sale that leads to relocation, leaving the club's long-term home uncertain as the search for a buyer begins.

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The process will be carried out with MLS and investment bankers retained by the club. Saputo did not give an asking price or a timetable for finding a buyer. He described the decision as the product of careful consideration rather than an urgent response to circumstances. His family will continue operating the team while the sale process takes place, with no departure date announced.

Saputo's preference for keeping the club in Montreal came with a financial condition. He said a prospective owner needed the resources to maintain the operation and invest in players, and that he would not accept a heavily discounted sale simply to preserve the location. He also acknowledged that an offer involving relocation could be considered if no suitable local solution emerged and the proposal aligned with MLS's plans. That was a conditional possibility, not an announcement that the club will move.

The announcement follows more than three decades of Saputo's involvement with the team. He founded it in late 1992 as the Montreal Impact and oversaw its progress through several leagues before it entered MLS in 2012. He also led a consortium that acquired control of Italian club Bologna in 2014 and remains its president, the Guardian reported.

Montreal's facilities are part of the club's existing operation. It owns Stade Saputo, an outdoor stadium with a capacity of just over 19,000. The ground opened in 2008 and was expanded for the team's arrival in MLS in 2012. Saputo did not attach a sale valuation to the club or its stadium at the press conference.

On the field, Montreal has won only one playoff game since 2016, according to the Guardian. Saputo acknowledged that the next owner would need to bring spending closer to that of other MLS teams. For now, the confirmed change is the opening of the sale process: the family remains in charge while seeking a buyer, and neither a completed transaction nor relocation has been announced.