The Deseret Morning News, The Salt Lake Tribune and a county resident filed a public-records request last month with the county for the documents. Corroon decided to release the team's operating model, but Real appealed the decision, saying it was proprietary business information. Before the appeals process was completed, someone leaked the documents, prompting Real to stop all negotiations with the county on Tuesday.

When asked Tuesday if Corroon was afraid of legislative backlash for denying Real's hotel tax funding plan, he said: "Let the chips fall where they may. I'm making a decision that I feel is in the best interest of the citizens of the county."

Wednesday night, Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson suggested that the Legislature could have treated Real Salt Lake more fairly by allowing it to locate in downtown Salt Lake City.

The team's trouble are "a product of the worst kind of politics," Anderson said. "If we ever see this team go to San Antonio, we know who to thank."

The Legislature hurt Salt Lake City's bid during the 2005 session when it prohibited the use of redevelopment agency money for recreation facilities, specifically including stadiums. Salt Lake City courted the team for months but ultimately couldn't provide the amount of land that the team wanted for satellite development around the stadium.

Any bid that Salt Lake renewed for the stadium, however, would have to include the same transient-room tax money that Corroon disallowed for the Sandy stadium, Anderson said.

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Contributing: Kersten Swinyard

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com; astowell@desnews.com

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