In 1995, Art Modell, who had purchased the Browns in 1961, announced he was relocating the team to Baltimore, Maryland.

The outrage and controversy that erupted, as well as the NFL's desire to keep a team in Cleveland, led to an agreement whereby Modell was cleared to move his team ( which became the Baltimore Ravens ) but relinquished ownership of the Browns ' name, colors, logos and history.

An instant rivalry was born, fueled initially by Paul Brown's rivalry with Art Modell.

When Paul Brown was fired by Art Modell, Brown still owned the equipment used by Cleveland.

A few months later, Art Modell announced he was moving the NFL's Cleveland Browns to Baltimore to play as the Baltimore Ravens.

In 1970, Rebel Railroad was renamed " Goldrush Junction " when it was bought by Art Modell, who also owned the Cleveland Browns football team.

Arthur Bertram Modell ( June 23, 1925 – September 6, 2012 ) was an American businessman, entrepreneur and former National Football League team owner.

Modell was born in Brooklyn, New York.

His father George was a wine sales manager who died when Modell was 14.

Modell also was willing to provide his team as an opponent for both the first prime time Thanksgiving game in 1966 and the opening Monday Night Football broadcast in 1970.

Modell took an active role in Cleveland community life and was a leading fundraiser for charities and various Republican Party candidates.

As head of Stadium Corp., Modell was also the landlord of the Indians organization.

Modell later claimed the loge rentals were not profitable as he had financed their construction at the prevailing high interest rates, although he did not explain why the rental income that was earned was not used to offset the debt.

In turn, Modell was dissatisfied with the Indians ' new ballpark because Stadium Corp .' s suite rental revenue decreased once Jacobs Field opened.

Modell was not offered a place as a tenant in Cleveland's new Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex, so he instead asked for improvements to Municipal Stadium.

It was during this time that Modell entered into secret discussions with the State of Maryland to move the franchise to Baltimore for the 1996 season.

Commentators have speculated that the timing of the announcement was to cause the referendum to go down in defeat and thus allow Modell to make the case that he was not receiving the public support he needed to remain viable in Cleveland.

In return, Modell was allowed to take the franchise rights, players and organization to Baltimore as the new expansion Ravens.

Modell was a Hall of Fame finalist in 2001 and a semifinalist in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

By the 1990s, Modell was disturbed at what he saw as the financial distress of the Browns and the Stadium Corp., as recounted in detail in the book Fumble: The Browns, Modell, & the Move by Michael G. Poplar with James A. Toman ( ISBN 0-936760-11-7 ) which was written by a Modell associate and longtime Browns employee.

In 1995, he assisted his friend at the time Art Modell, former owner of the Browns, in moving Modell's NFL franchise rights from Cleveland to Baltimore.

The announcement of the move occurred several days before the public referendum on the extension of the sin tax that would fund the improvements on Municipal Stadium as Modell had originally requested.

Modell had promised never to move the team.

remain in Minnesota if the Twins are ever moved out of state, a deal similar to what Modell agreed to with the city of Cleveland during the move.

Upon the team's move in 1996, Modell selected former NFL head coach and offensive guru Ted Marchibroda as its new head coach.

Brown did not inform Modell of the move, and Modell only heard about it after getting a call from Washington Redskins owner George Preston Marshall.

In November of that year, Browns owner Art Modell announced he would move his franchise to Baltimore after the season.

The following year, Modell decided to move the football team to Baltimore, Maryland after the 1995 season.

Art Modell decided in 1995 to move the Browns to Baltimore and rename the team the Ravens, provoking a wave of anger and disbelief from fans and former players.

As part of the deal which permitted former Browns owner Art Modell to move to Baltimore, the Browns name and colors remained with Cleveland.

The following year, the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy saw the owner of the Browns, Art Modell, move his team to Baltimore and be rechristened as the Baltimore Ravens.

When Art Modell, owner of the Cleveland Browns, wanted to relocate his team to Baltimore in a surprise move first reported on by the Boston Globe on November 4 of 1995, the ensuing press furor and public relations mess forced the league to intercede and make an agreement with him and the Cities of Cleveland and Baltimore before the new season had barely begun.

Lerner introduced Modell to Baltimore financiers of the deal, and he sat behind on the podium at the press conference Modell announcing the team's move.

However, many Browns fans were angered after word leaked that Modell ’ s deal to move the Browns to Baltimore was signed on Lerner ’ s private jet.

After being dismissed as the Browns ' head coach by Art Modell ( who had purchased majority interest in the team in ) in January, Brown had shown interest in establishing another NFL franchise in Ohio and looked at both Cincinnati and Columbus.

However, possibly as an insult to Art Modell, or possibly as an homage to his own start as a head coach to the Massillon Tigers, Paul Brown chose the exact shade of orange used by his former team.

* " Das Model " ( spelling on album: " Das Modell "; English version title: " The Model "), a song by the German band Kraftwerk.

Using his background in advertising to market the team, Modell showed a flair for promotions, with one popular innovation coming in 1962 by scheduling pro football preseason doubleheaders at Cleveland Stadium.

Modell took control of Cleveland Municipal Stadium in 1973, which had been owned by the City of Cleveland but had become too expensive for the city to operate or maintain.

The Browns were paying rent to both themselves and Modell, by constructing loges in the ballpark, generated significant cash flow from the loge rentals not shared with the Indians.

In 1979, Stadium Corp. and Modell were implicated in a lawsuit brought by Browns minority shareholder Robert Gries of Gries Sports Enterprises, who successfully alleged that Stadium Corp. manipulated the Browns ' accounting records to help Stadium Corp. and Modell absorb a loss on real property that had been purchased in the Cleveland suburb of Strongsville as a potential site for a new stadium.

Less charitable portraits of Modell are contained in the books Glory for Sale: Inside the Browns ' Move to Baltimore & the New NFL by Jon Morgan ( ISBN 0-9631246-5-X ) and Pay Dirt: the Business of Professional Team Sports by James Quirk and Rodney D. Fort ( ISBN 0-691-01574-0 ).

Like Marchibroda, Billick, an Ohio native, had been considered one of the brightest offensive minds among the league's offensive coaches, and also had been considered by Modell as a possible Browns head coaching candidate.

Under the deal, Modell retained a small interest ( approximately 1 % share ) upon the team's sale as a legal maneuver to avoid a claim by the Andrews trust, which was controlled by family of a former business adviser who sought to collect an estimated $ 30 million finder's fee upon Modell's sale of the team.

* Baltimore Business Journal article following Ravens ' sale by Modell, 11-10-2003