​Welcome back! It takes a headline this big to steal the spotlight from a thrilling sports weekend, but a $9.6 billion team sale nearly did the trick. In today’s edition: Khosla lands the Seahawks, Sinner climbs the money list, UFC sets records while McGregor reveals his emotional side, soccer streams onward, the biggest trade in sports history, and more. Don’t let your friends and colleagues miss any of it—tell them to subscribe!
Time to show you the money… Seattle Seahawks sold
(Yahoo Sports) Saturday night, as England and Norway battled for a World Cup semifinal spot, America’s beloved football returned to demonstrate its extraordinary financial muscle once again. A group led by Vinod Khosla reached a $9.612 billion agreement to purchase the Seattle Seahawks, setting a new record for an NFL control transaction. The deal effectively closes a process that formally began on February 18, though the path to the record price was anything but straightforward. Rumors of a potential sale, initially disputed by the Allen family estate, began circulating ahead of the Super Bowl, with the Seahawks showcased during America’s premier sports spectacle. At the time, projections suggested a sale could fetch between $9 and $11 billion.
In early May, Sportico reported that two bidding groups had joined the running—one led by Aditya Mittal and Wyc Grousbeck, the other by Khosla. Despite the Seahawks’ Super Bowl victory and the emergence of qualified bidders, ESPN later noted that the market for the team was “soft,” with expectations pegged around $9 billion. The field narrowed to the two aforementioned groups last week, and Khosla ultimately prevailed on Saturday at $9.6 billion, a price that didn’t hit the double-digit heights some had hoped for, but aligned with initial expectations.
The outgoing owners: Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen bought the Seahawks in 1997 for $194 million. With this record sale, the franchise has appreciated by more than 14% annually. Following Allen’s death in 2018, the team entered the estate and was chaired by his sister, Jody. Allen had specified that the sports franchises should be sold, with proceeds directed to charity.
NFL rules require that a controlling owner be an individual rather than an estate or trust. While the Seahawks operated under a carve-out to accommodate estate considerations, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year that it became a point of pressure within league circles. The estate also faced a condition tied to public funding for Lumen Field, which would have sent 10% of any sale to the state of Washington if the deal closed before a 2024 deadline.
The incoming owners: Vinod Khosla, who led the winning group, is the founder of Sun Microsystems and the venture firm Khosla Ventures, whose portfolio includes OpenAI and DoorDash among others. This marks a new chapter for the Seahawks, who are set to move forward under new ownership with substantial assets and expectations for continued competitiveness.