Gordon Pointe Acquisition Corp. Completes
Business Combination with HOF Village, LLC
Combined Company Renamed Hall of Fame Resort
& Entertainment Company
Combined Company Will Begin Trading on NASDAQ
Under the Ticker Symbols “HOFV” and “HOFVW”
HOF Village, LLC (“HOF Village”), the owner of the multi-use
sports, entertainment and media destination centered around the Pro
Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, today announced the
completion of its previously announced business combination with
Gordon Pointe Acquisition Corp. (“GPAQ” or “Gordon Pointe”)
(NASDAQ: GPAQ, GPAQU, GPAQW), a publicly traded special purpose
acquisition company. The resulting company is named Hall of Fame
Resort & Entertainment Company (“HOFV” or “the Company”), and
its common stock and warrants are expected to trade on the NASDAQ
Capital Market under the ticker symbols “HOFV” and “HOFVW,”
respectively, on July 2, 2020.
The transaction creates a premier sports, entertainment and
media enterprise surrounding the Pro Football Hall of Fame that is
poised to capitalize on its unique partnership with the most
dominant professional sports brand in the country and its direct
access to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s library of
never-before-seen footage and memorabilia. The combined public
company will continue to develop an immersive, multi-use
destination resort in Canton, Ohio named the Johnson Controls Hall
of Fame Village, and a media program that unifies live
entertainment and experiences, fantasy sports and eGaming with
partners and content from some of the most powerful and storied
brands in football, including the NFL Alumni Association and the
Pro Football Hall of Fame.
James J. Dolan, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of GPAQ,
commented, “Mike Crawford and his team possess a unique ability to
develop this destination resort and entertainment enterprise.
Mike’s extensive background working for some of the most popular
brands in leisure tourism positions him to capitalize on
professional football’s powerful brand and passionate fan base. We
are excited to be part of The Hall of Fame Resort &
Entertainment Company’s next steps as it continues to create a
special destination and enterprise that diversifies the Company’s
capabilities across media, gaming and fantasy on a global level as
a dynamic public company.”
“The Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company is poised
to produce substantial growth by combining an experiential,
sports-themed destination resort with our direct access to one of
the world’s largest collections of football memorabilia, which
presents tremendous opportunities to engage football fans around
the world,” said Mr. Crawford. “As a public company, we will have
greater flexibility to execute on our integrated business model and
produce exclusive football-focused programming, distribute original
content across the media landscape, and expand into fantasy sports
and eGaming, among other high-growth opportunities. This
significant milestone has been made possible by the hard work and
dedication of our committed team and the support of our
shareholders, and I look forward to working with them to continue
to build the Company and its multiple revenue streams.”
Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company
Highlights
- The Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village is within five hours
of over 32 million people and only an eight-hour drive from 15 NFL
franchise markets, positioning it to leverage the popularity of
professional football and address a shortage of themed attractions
in the Midwest region. HOFV has already invested $250 million to
complete Phase 1 and advance Phase II of the development, and has
continued to strategically expand and manage its growth by:
- Acquiring, extensively renovating, and rebranding downtown
Canton’s largest hotel as a DoubleTree by Hilton Hotels, increasing
the Company’s capacity to host visitors for events and
programming;
- Entering an agreement with ASM Global to manage Tom Benson Hall
of Fame Stadium, the company’s world-class 20,000-plus seat sports
and entertainment stadium that Forbes named as one of 13
game-changing NFL stadiums;
- The Company has formed mutually beneficial sponsorships and
partnership agreements with leading brands like Johnson Controls,
with whom it has a naming rights agreement, and Constellation, the
exclusive energy supplier of HOFV and the Pro Football Hall of
Fame, and has recently:
- Secured multimillion dollar funding from Constellation through
its Efficiency Made Easy (EME) program to implement energy
efficiency technology and systems throughout the resort, including
the Constellation Center for Excellence; and,
- Formed a partnership with the National Football League’s Alumni
Association (“NFL Alumni”), which will bring the NFL Alumni
headquarters and the NFL Alumni Academy complex to the Village site
along with youth and player programming taking place on the Village
campus and across the country.
- The combined company will drive consumer engagement from
recreational and corporate activities including youth football,
sports programs, conventions and trade shows, fantasy sports and
eGaming. In May 2020, the Company acquired a majority interest in a
fantasy football league, which it expects to leverage the Company's
brand and access to intellectual property to enter the high-growth
vertical of the fantasy sports and gaming market in a unique
way.
Transaction Details
The formation of the Company was completed in a business
combination whereby GPAQ merged with HOF Village, LLC. The
transaction was approved by GPAQ’s stockholders on June 30th,
2020.
Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company will be led by
HOF Village, LLC’s team of highly accomplished executives,
including President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Crawford,
Chief Financial Officer Jason Krom, President of Operations Michael
Levy, and Executive Vice President of Public Affairs Anne Graffice,
who will continue to serve in their respective roles. In addition,
Michael Crawford will serve as Chairman of the Board of the
combined company and will be joined on the board by James J. Dolan,
formerly Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of GPAQ, who will
serve as Vice Chairman; Stuart Lichter, President and Chairman of
Industrial Realty Group; Michael Klein, Partner of M. Klein and
Company; Anthony Buzzelli, CPA, formerly Audit Partner and Advisory
Partner at Deloitte & Touche; David Dennis, CPA, formerly
Advisory Sector Leader for KPMG LLP’s State and Local Government
Advisory Practice; Karl Holz, a former senior executive at The Walt
Disney Company; Curtis Martin, Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
and founder of the Curtis Martin Job Foundation; Mary Owen, Founder
and President of MMO Capital LLC; Edward Roth, President and CEO of
Aultman Health Foundation and Vice Chairman of the Pro Football
Hall of Fame; and Kimberly Schaefer, President of Two Bit Circus,
Inc.
Maxim Group LLC acted as financial and capital markets advisor
to GPAQ and Fox Rothschild LLP served as GPAQ’s legal advisor.
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP served as HOF Village, LLC’s legal
advisor.
About the Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment
Company
The Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company is a resort
and entertainment company leveraging the power and popularity of
professional football and its legendary players in partnership with
the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Headquartered in Canton, Ohio, the
Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company is the public
holding company for HOF Village, LLC and its subsidiaries. The
Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village, a development of HOF
Village, LLC, is a multi-use sports, entertainment and media
destination centered around the Pro Football Hall of Fame's campus
in Canton, Ohio. HOF Village, LLC was founded by the Pro Football
Hall of Fame through its wholly owned, for profit subsidiary Hall
of Fame Village, Inc. and Industrial Realty Group, LLC. Prior to
the acquisition of HOF Village, LLC, Gordon Pointe Acquisition
Corp. was a special purpose acquisition company formed in January
of 2018. Gordon Pointe Acquisition Corp. began trading on the
NASDAQ stock exchange in January 2018 and, prior to its combination
with HOF Village, LLC in June 2020, its Class A ordinary shares,
units and warrants traded under the ticker symbols GPAQ, GPAQU, and
GPAQW, respectively. Additional information on the new company can
be found at www.hofreco.com.
About the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Located in Canton, Ohio, the birthplace of the National Football
League, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit
institution with the Mission to Honor the Heroes of the Game,
Preserve its History, Promote its Values, & Celebrate
Excellence Everywhere. The Hall of Fame has formed a wholly owned,
for profit subsidiary to be a member of HOFV. Hundreds of thousands
of fans from across the globe travel to Canton annually to
experience “The Most Inspiring Place on Earth!” that chronicles
America's most popular sport.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made herein are “forward-looking statements”
within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements may be identified by the use of words such as
“anticipate”, “believe”, “expect”, “estimate”, “plan”, “outlook”,
and “project” and other similar expressions that predict or
indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of
historical matters. Such forward-looking statements include timing
of the proposed merger; the business plans, objectives,
expectations and intentions of the parties once the transaction is
complete, and Holding’s, GPAQ’s and HOFV’s estimated and future
results of operations, business strategies, competitive position,
industry environment and potential growth opportunities, relating
to the acquired business. These forward-looking statements reflect
the current analysis of existing information and are subject to
various risks and uncertainties. As a result, caution must be
exercised in relying on forward-looking statements. Due to known
and unknown risks, our actual results may differ materially from
our expectations or projections. The following risks and
uncertainties, among others, could cause actual results to differ
materially from those described in these forward-looking
statements: the impact of the Coronavirus on GPAQ and HOFV; the
outcome of any legal proceedings that have been, or will be,
instituted against GPAQ or other parties to the Merger Agreement
following announcement of the Merger Agreement and transactions
contemplated therein; the ability of Holdings to meet NASDAQ
listing standards following the merger and in connection with the
consummation thereof; the failure to obtain the financing
arrangements necessary to complete the development of the project;
the failure to achieve the assumptions underlying certain of the
financial projections included within the investor presentation
including, among others, securing the timely financing for, and
achieving construction of, the second phase of the project within
assumed timeframes and financial budget, and achieving expected
attendance and occupancy rates; risks that the proposed transaction
disrupts current plans and operations and the potential
difficulties in employee retention as a result of the announcement
of the Merger Agreement and consummation of the transaction
described therein; costs related to the proposed merger and the
impact of the substantial indebtedness to be incurred to finance
the consummation of the merger; changes in applicable laws or
regulations; the ability of the combined company to meet its
financial and strategic goals, due to, among other things,
competition, the ability of the combined company to grow and manage
growth profitability, maintain relationships with customers and
retain its key employees; the possibility that the combined company
may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or
competitive factors; and other risks and uncertainties described
herein, as well as those risks and uncertainties discussed from
time to time in other reports and other public filings with the SEC
by GPAQ and Holdings.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200701005943/en/
HOF Village, LLC Media Inquiries Anne Graffice, 330-458-9176
Anne.Graffice@hofvillage.com Or Phil Denning, (646) 277-1258
Phil.Denning@icrinc.com HOF Village, LLC or Gordon Pointe Investor
Inquiries Jacques Cornet, (646) 277-1285 Jacques.Cornet@icrinc.com
or Will Swett, (646) 677-1818 Will.Swett@icrinc.com
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