Longtime season-ticket holder Thompson to take over as Elks owner

EDMONTON — Larry Thompson is the new private owner of the Edmonton Elks.

A CFL source requesting anonymity said the former owner of Thompson Brothers Construction, will become the franchise’s new owner.

The source spoke on the condition of anonymity because neither the CFL nor the Elks have publicly confirmed the sale.

With Thompson taking over, the CFL now has just two community-owned franchises — the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

TSN Football Insider Dave Naylor notes that Thompson comes from the construction business, is local, and a longtime season ticket holder.

The Elks (2-7) sit last in the CFL's West Division but have won two straight.

Last November, the franchise formed a five-person committee to evaluate its ownership structure due to financial struggles.

The team, which has been community-owned since it was founded in 1949, reported a $3.3 million deficit in 2022 and was looking for private investment to stabilize its future.

"We are going to need a capital investment on the club going forward, because it's going to take us a couple of years to get out of these losses we've been accumulating on an annual basis," Rick LeLacheur, the team's interim president and CEO, said at the time.

LeLacheur said the franchise had received interest from potential private owners.

"But it's a great community for sports, it's a great community for football and I think there's going to be a fair amount of interest whether it's a group or an individual," he said.

Last month, the team fired head coach and general manager Chris Jones following a 0-5 start. The club had a record of 8-33 over two-plus seasons during Jones's second tenure with the team, including two seasons (2021, 2022) without a win at Commonwealth Stadium as part of a record 22-game home losing streak.

The team hasn't made the playoffs since 2019.