Could the Washington Commanders, the NFL’s sole team in Chocolate City, finally have a Black owner? That could happen if Magic happens, and by Magic, we mean Magic Johnson.
Magic is part of a group led by 76ers and Devils co-owner Josh Harris. According to ESPN, the group has submitted a bid for $6 billion for the Commanders.
“The Josh Harris/Mitchell Rales group, which now includes Magic Johnson, officially has submitted a fully-financed bid that meets Dan Snyder’s $6 billion asking price, per source,” tweeted ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
But they’re not alone.
CBS Sports reports that other bidders have emerged, including Canadian Billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos and Tilman Fertitta, who owns the Houston Rockets, the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casinos and the restaurant group Landry’s Inc. While Apostolopoulos also submitted a $6 billion bid, Fertitta, per Sports Illustrated, has submitted a bid of $5.5 billion.
CBS Sports also reports that a fourth, mystery bidder has emerged but hasn’t been named.
Also in the mix is Jeff Bezos, who Snyder has reportedly blocked from the bidding process. But that might not stop Bezos.
The Josh Harris-led group is making their second attempt to purchase an NFL team.
Last year that group, which also featured Magic Johnson, made a bid for the Denver Broncos before they were eventually outbid by the Walton-Penner group. The latter also featured two powerful, successful Black women in Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments, and former Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice. They were later joined by F1 champion, Lewis Hamilton.
This would be Magic’s latest foray into team ownership. He has stakes in the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks and MLS’s LAFC. He also put up $50 million of his own money to own a piece of the Dodgers, which sold for over $2 billion.
At $6 billion, the sale of the Commanders would become the most expensive team sale in history, eclipsing the Broncos ($4.65 billion) and Phoenix Suns ($4 billion). Some think that the sale of the English soccer team Chelsea FC was the most expensive, but the actual purchase price was $3.16 billion, and then billionaire Todd Boehly agreed to add in another $2.21 billion to help the team.
While NFL team owners are meeting right now in Phoenix, Synder is reportedly nowhere to be seen, which makes the potential sale even more intriguing.
We will keep you updated on the sale.
