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Cliff Illig: One of the Saviors of Sporting KC

The KC Star does a fantastic profile on Illig including tons of SKC, talk of buying an NHL team and of course those Everton rumors.

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Sam Mellinger has a fantastic profile of Cliff Illig in the Kansas City Star . Seriously, go read it. And if you haven’t already, you should subscribe to the Star. It’s important to support local news and we at The Blue Testament want to continue to bring attention to their good work, especially as it pertains to Sporting Kansas City .

If you aren’t familiar with Illig, he’s one of the billionaires behind Sporting KC. He along with his former business partner, the late Neal Patterson, started Cerner, the largest employer in KC. They (along with Robb Heinemann, Greg Maday and Pat Curran) bought the then Kansas City Wizards from Lamar Hunt in 2006 and rebranded the club into Sporting Kansas City in late 2010.

Illig claims to have known nothing about soccer before purchasing SKC. It’s actually a story that mirrors his starting of Cerner since he apparently knew nothing about healthcare. For Illig, it was all about his love of Kansas City. He and Patterson would go on to be intimately involved in the building of SKC’s soccer specific stadium but in recent years he’s turned control over to his son Mike Illig.

But Cliff didn’t stop with just the stadium. He now owns a farm that grows grass for both Children’s Mercy Park and other fields. Concessions aren’t outsourced any longer but handled in house. And they started Fan Three Sixty , “a fan-data company considered to be among the best in the country.”

Illig literally turned Sporting KC from a team that was potentially going to be relocated to a model franchise. “They’re the model,” MLS commissioner Don Garber said. “There isn’t a new expansion owner who’s not spending time talking with Cliff and going to Kansas City and seeing the facility.”

Again, you should go read the profile to gain a deeper understanding of Illig.

Here are a few of the many interesting facts about Illig from the story:

• According to Mellinger, Illig recently had a National Hockey League (NHL) team call about moving a team to Kansas City (though, “he didn’t take it seriously.”).
• Plus, you’ll all remember the rumors that the ownership group was looking into purchasing Everton in the English Premier League.
• He has $250 million in venture capital invested in KC area businesses
• He’s stupid rich (164-foot yacht, houses in Arizona and Vail, Gulfstream G450)
• He’s friends with George Brett (sweet!)
• He wants Kansas City to be the “Silicon Valley of agriculture”

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ODESSA Motor yacht for charter

Spread over three decks, ODESSA boasts a combination of exceptional outdoor living areas, generous guest areas, and accommodation for up to 12 guests, giving the impression that she is much larger than her length. Designed for cruising in absolute comfort, she is the ideal charter yacht for al fresco living. Her sun deck has an oversized sun deck surrounded by sunpads, adjacent to a shaded seating area and large bar. Forward there is the Portuguese bridge with optional awnings. The bridge deck has a large shaded dining area and a large seating area with coffee tables surrounded by a huge sofa, while the main deck aft has further lounging options.

• WINNER: ShowBoats Design Awards 2010
• Exquisite contemporary Armani Casa interior
• Luxurious accommodations for 12 in six cabins
• Serene main lounge and formal dining
• Four-person elevator serving four decks
• Sky lounge with card table, onyx bar and 2.34m/92" projection screen
• Fabulous al fresco dining options
• Wonderful, spacious sun deck layout with large bar
• Zero speed stabilisers to reduce any rolling motion while at anchor

About ODESSA

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ODESSA's award winning minimalist interior is warm and inviting. A modern design, it is a combination of vertical grain walnut joinery, wide-plank walnut hardwood floors, and neutral marbles. Textiles and furnishings by Armani Casa are both comfortable and sophisticated and are complemented by an intelligent use of creative ambient lighting that changes the mood for differing scenarios.

Her elegant main lounge and formal dining are divided by an aquarium panel, with cosy seating around coffee tables at the centre, with walkways either side for access to the dining area with seating for up to 12 guests. The sky lounge is less formal and has a huge L-shaped sofa opposite an L-shaped bar. Up to 12 guests are accommodated in a full beam master suite with separate office, a VIP cabin, three double cabins and one convertible double/ single cabin with an additional pullman berth.

Splendid leisure facilities and a huge inventory of watertoys have ensured ODESSA's reputation as an exceptionally popular charter yacht.

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Please note that tenders and toys are subject to regular upgrades and changes. Contact a Burgess broker for the latest information.

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Please note that fitness equipment and wellness facilities are subject to regular upgrades and changes. Contact a Burgess broker for the latest information.

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How Sporting KC's wildly successful ownership group got involved in MLS

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Robb Heineman may be the public face of Sporting Kansas City's ownership group, Sporting Club, and the late Neal Patterson may have been credited as the " driving force " behind the club's revival, but in the five-person group another owner, Cliff Illig, played a key role as well.

Illig, who co-founded the Cerner Corporation with Patterson and in 2006 went on to purchase Sporting KC, then known as the Kansas City Wizards, spoke about the process in a long-form profile in the Kansas City Star by Sam Mellinger on Friday.

After setting down roots in Kansas City and becoming a venture capitalist aiming to bring economic clout to the region beyond the health-records business that became Cerner, Illig was approached by one of the key figures in MLS history, Lamar Hunt, to see if the soccer club could be a credit to the area and to MLS alike.

“My dad knew a couple things about them,” Clark Hunt, Lamar Hunt’s son and current chairman and CEO of the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, said of Illig and Patterson, as quoted in the profile. “They had the financial resources to make it work over the long haul, and they were very engaged in Kansas City and doing things that were good for Kansas City. In my dad’s mind, that probably made them perfect.”

“Are we going to do this?” Patterson asked Illig.

“I don’t think we have any choice,” Illig said.

They took the plunge, bought the team, rebranded, built Children's Mercy Park, a new national soccer training center, set up a reserve team, and the rest is history. Since buying the club Illig and Sporting Club have seen Sporting KC win MLS Cup in 2013 and three U.S. Open Cup titles.

You can read about Illig's influence on Sporting KC and MLS, as well as his varied interests in a distinguished career, in full at the Kansas City Star.

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Cliff Illig, Co-Founder Of Kansas City's Cerner Corp., Retires

Cliff Illig, Cerner Corp. co-founder and vice chairman, has retired from the Kansas City-based health IT company to focus on outside interests, according to a news release.

Illig notified the board and the company on Monday, and the announcement takes effect Tuesday, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

"It was one year ago that we announced Brent (Shafer) as our new chairman and CEO,” Illig said in the release. “It’s very clear to me that the work that Brent and Cerner’s strong leadership team have done this past year has the company on the right path. That, combined with my focus on a growing number of outside interests, led me to what I believe is the right decision at the right time — the decision to leave the enterprise that has meant a great deal to me for my entire career.”

Read the full story in the Kansas City Business Journal .

Cliff Illig: Building a KC Tech Powerhouse

Cliff Illig is an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, and a native Kansas Citian. Cliff went from working for his father loading punch cards into a computer, to writing up a business plan with some friends on a picnic bench in Loose Park, to founding Cerner, a $5 billion dollar healthcare software company. Now principal owner of Sporting Kansas City, Cliff talks Kansas City soccer and all that went into bringing the World Cup to our town. You’ll discover how saying things like, “figure it out”, “slog away at it” and “what would Neal do” became Cerner’s mantra for success.

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Sporting KC owner Cliff Illig talks World Cup bid, playoff push and the future of MLS

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Sporting Kansas City owner Cliff Illig made a special appearance Thursday on Sports Radio 810 WHB, joining The Program host Soren Petro live from the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship in Lake Tahoe.

Illig, a founder of Cerner and an integral member of the Sporting Club ownership group since 2006, dove into several soccer-centric topics in a compelling 30-minute discussion along the greens of Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course in Stateline, Nevada.

First up was a prideful reflection of the Women's World Cup, which saw Kansas City shine as one of the greatest watch party hosts on the planet throughout the tournament. In addition to showering praise on the U.S. Women's National Team, Illig expressed confidence that Kansas City is well-positioned to become an official Host City for the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup. He was quick to acknowledge that competition will be stern, however, as only 10 of the 17 bidding cities will host matches. As Illig put it, "We'll give it our best shot, and we've got a good reputation of punching above our weight. We don't feel like we're outgunned at all."

Illig also shared his thoughts on the recent progress of the U.S. Men's National Team, which earned a second-place finish at the Concacaf Gold Cup last weekend. Sporting's owner was pleased with the Americans' performance in the competition and believes head coach Gregg Berhalter has the side trending in the right direction as preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup approach.

The conversation wouldn't have been complete without a thorough examination of Sporting Kansas City. Illig admitted that the club's run to the Concacaf Champions League Semifinals took its toll over the next few weeks as injuries and on-field struggles mounted. Nevertheless, Sporting sit just five points below the playoff line, and Illig has upmost belief that Manager Peter Vermes and company are in the process of righting the ship.

Lastly, Illig shed insight on what he believes the future of MLS will look like. The importance of cultivating Academy talent will become increasingly vital, he says, as well as acquiring high-caliber players from abroad who are in their prime rather than at the twilight of their careers.

Listen to the entirety of Illig's excellent interview below.

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Sporting Kansas City owner Cliff Illig addresses fans at the Power & Light District after Kansas City was announced as a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

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Clifford Illig's House

• Clifford Illig's House

Illig is the billionaire co-founder of Cerner, a Kansas City-based medical software corporation. He also co-owns the Sporting Kansas City soccer team.

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