Oklahoma City investor Christian Kanady on Wednesday purchased majority interest in the Energy FC soccer team and is also stepping in to complete a land donation to the city as part of the proposed agreement to build a stadium south of Lower Bricktown.
The sale by team owners Bob Funk Jr., Tim McLaughlin and Donna Clark coincides with Funk assuming a greater role in running Express Employment Professionals where he is executive vice president.
"Our goal has always been to do what is best for Oklahoma City," Funk said. "We founded the club in that mindset. We're continuing on with sitting down with Christian and his group to take on the Energy. We found the right person and the right group that will always want to do what is best for Oklahoma City. This is going to be a great partnership and we have the right guy involved. He has the appropriate vision and mindset for Oklahoma City and the fans."
The transaction amount was not disclosed. It comes just weeks after Echo, led by Kanady, sold less than half of its minerals affiliate for a price reported at more than $500 million to Sixth Street Partners, a global investment firm based in San Francisco.
“They did a great job of founding the club,” Kanady said. “But they are at a different stage in their lives. Bob is taking a more active role at Express and Tim is an empty nester and wants to travel with his wife. Tim is also wanting to focus his time on Fields and Futures and Square Deal investments. They approached me about purchasing the team and we have the opportunity to put it on steroids moving forward.”
Kanady founded Echo in 2010 and has diversified its investments to biosciences, real estate and entertainment since moving into the Ziggurat building overlooking Kerr Park in 2020. Echo is the leading investor in Prairie Surf Studios and Wheeler Bio.
“At the end of the day, if I can do two things l love at the same time, I do it,” Kanady said. “And those two things are investing and improving Oklahoma City.”
What to know about the Energy FC, and why they haven't returned to the field yet
Funk and McLaughlin started the Energy FC in 2013. The team is part of the USL Championship, second division of the United Soccer League. The team played at Bishop McGuinness High School during its inaugural year and then played eight seasons at Taft Stadium.
Team operations were suspended for the 2022 season due to renovations at Taft Stadium, and the team was to return this year, but instead, the suspension was extended when the league required the team play on a regulation-size field.
A stadium for the team was approved by voters as part of MAPS 4. The Oklahoma City Council in January unanimously approved using economic development funds that would increase the budget for the MAPS 4 multipurpose stadium from $41 million to $71 million in response to rising construction cost estimates.
The additional funding is dependent on the multipurpose stadium being located in downtown Oklahoma City, where $20 million in Tax Increment Financing, or TIF, and $10 million previously allocated to the Omni hotel debt service fund could be used to help pay for the stadium’s rising construction costs.
The funding plan was written to include a donation to the city of 7.2 acres of land south of Lower Bricktown by owners of the Energy FC soccer team. That land was previously home to the Producers Cooperative Oil Mill for decades until it closed in 2015.
City officials previously reported they expected design work to start this year with construction to begin in 2026.
The stadium, if built at the former cotton oil property, would be within walking distance of Bricktown, the Oklahoma River, the Oklahoma City Convention Center, Scissortail Park and a new NBA arena to be built for the Thunder.
“I believe this is just the start for development of something special in entertainment for Oklahoma City,” Kanady said. “I really believe that like with the arena, this will keep our city big league especially as it pertains to the language of sports.”
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