Chicago Cubs, Team’s Former Owner Lose Tax Dispute With IRS

The holding company for the Chicago Cubs and the Tribune Media Co.—which held an ownership stake in the team until 2019—failed to convince the U.S. Tax Court to strike down millions in IRS penalties on procedural grounds.

The case involves the transaction that created the holding company, Chicago Baseball Holdings LLC., which the IRS determined to be a disguised sale.

The agency determined that the Tribune had a resulting deficiency of nearly $182 million on its 2009 tax returns and imposed a misstatement penalty of nearly $72.7 million. The holding company also was hit with a 40% penalty under ...