CF MONTREAL owner Joey Saputo has announced plans to sell the MLS club.

The decision comes following Montreal’s last-placed finish in the Eastern Conference.

Saputo revealed his family were in the early stages of “initiating a structured sale process” of the Canada-based club.

He said: “This decision is neither driven by urgency, nor dictated by circumstance.

“It’s the result of a careful and deliberate reflection on where we stand today, and more importantly, on the opportunities that lie ahead for the club.”

Saputo, who cut an emotional figure throughout the announcement, went on to say that he is determined to keep the club in Montreal.

However, the businessman refused to rule out the possibility of selling to a buyer who could move it.

He continued: “I will not discount the club to the point of just giving it away just for the sake of giving it away.

“I want to be perfectly clear. I love this club. I will love this club to stay here.

“But if an owner comes in that doesn’t have the capacity to keep the club at the level that it needs to be at, and to spend the money that needs to be spent in order to bring in the players that this city wants to see, then at that point I’m not doing anyone a favor by selling it to someone just to keep it here.

“As much as I would love for this club to be here, if someone has the capacity to do it, and I feel that they have the capacity to do it, then I would love for this club to be here, and continue to build on what we did.

“But if there isn’t, and there’s an offer that comes in to relocate the club, and it’s in line with Major League Soccer and what they want to, then yeah, that’s where it’s going to be.”

Saputo did not indicate how much he would be willing to sell the club for.

However, in June last year, Forbes ranked Montreal as the second-least valuable team in the MLS with an estimation of $435million.

CF Montreal was established in 1992 and began competing in the MLS 20 years later.