The Circuit of the Americas officially announced Friday its intentions to support an effort to torpedo a deal between the city of Austin and Major League Soccer franchise owner Anthony Precourt to build a soccer stadium in North Austin.

An investor in the racetrack had already made a donation to the political action committee IndyAustin to support the group's effort to force an election on the stadium deal, according to the PAC's latest campaign finance report.

But Friday's announcement made it official that the track, which is in the process of bringing its own soccer team to Austin, wants no MLS team in Austin. The track's chairman, Bobby Epstein, has said that having a MLS team in Austin would be a serious blow to the success of the United Soccer League franchise Austin Bold FC that will begin playing at the track in March.

"Austin cannot keep giving special deals to out of town businesses with no connection to the community, while local businesses and homeowners struggle to afford to be here," a blog post from the Circuit of the Americas said. "By seeking a public vote - not unlike what has occurred in stadium deals elsewhere - IndyAustin is trying to do what is best for the taxpayers and the school district."

IndyAustin is circulating a petition that calls for elections on any city deals that would allow the construction of stadiums or other entertainment venues on public land.

The organization was one of the driving forces behind the petition that put Proposition J on the ballot. That item was aimed at the now-defunct CodeNext land use code rewrite. It calls for future elections to be held on any comprehensive updates to Austin's land use and zoning codes.

Precourt plans to build a privately financed $200 million, 20,000 seat stadium at the city-owned McKalla Place tract near the Domain. The city approved an initial stadium deal in August.

The site was to be the home of the Columbus Crew. However, it now appears that a group that includes the owner of the Cleveland Browns will purchase the franchise and Austin will get an expansion team.

In an Oct. 9 campaign finance report, IndyAustin showed a $20,000 donation from Irving Kessler, a Minnesota man who is listed as an investor in the Circuit of the Americans in a 2012 SEC filing.

When reached recently, IndyAustin co-founder Linda Curtis said she had no qualms about taking money from people associated with the track.

"Should we tell other business people that they shouldn't protect their interests and roll over and let a raid go on land they wanted access to?" Curtis said. "It doesn't matter if it is COTA. Politics makes strange bedfellows and it always has."