Dan Snyder, co-owner of the Washington Commanders, has agreed to sell the NFL franchise to a group led by American investor Josh Harris in a deal reported to be worth approximately $6 billion (£4.8 billion). This sale makes it the most expensive sports team purchase in the world.
Forbes ranks the team as the joint-eighth most valuable in world sport. Snyder and his wife Tanya initially bought the franchise for $750 million in 1999. Harris’ group includes NBA legend Magic Johnson and billionaire Mitchell Rales. Harris already co-owns the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers, the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, and is a minority owner of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers. He is also a general partner of Premier League football club Crystal Palace.
The sale of an NFL franchise requires approval from the league’s finance committee and must be ratified by three-quarters of the league’s 32 club owners. The owners are scheduled to meet in Minneapolis from May 22-24.
In a statement, Tanya and Dan Snyder expressed their satisfaction with the agreement and their support for Josh Harris and the team going forward. However, if the takeover of the Commanders is completed, Harris will have to sell his shares in the Pittsburgh Steelers due to NFL rules.
Last year, the sale of Premier League side Chelsea to American investor Todd Boehly and private equity firm Clearlake Capital was valued at £4.25 billion.
Dan Snyder, a lifelong fan of the team, had previously vowed not to change the franchise’s former name, the Redskins, despite criticisms that it was offensive to Native Americans. However, the team retired the name in July 2020 and adopted the name “Commanders” in February 2022.
During Snyder’s tenure, the team faced investigations into a “toxic workplace culture,” and a US report revealed decades of sexual misconduct that had been covered up by the team and the NFL. The report, spanning 79 pages, implicated Dan Snyder in workplace misconduct, alleging that he allowed and participated in such behavior and employed tactics to intimidate, surveil, and pay off victims.
