The Washington Commanders appear to be closer than ever to being sold, but a deal has yet to be reached.
There are two bidders who have reached owner Dan Snyder’s $6 billion asking price, per ESPN, which was something earlier reports had said was one of the biggest hurdles for a sale.
WASHINGTON COMMANDERS OWNER HAS CLEARED OUT OF TEAM FACILITY AS SALE LOOMS: REPORT
The report suggested the two bids that reached the asking price include a bid from Canadian billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos along with a group bid, which includes Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris, Danaher Corporation co-founder Mitchell Rales, and former NBA great Magic Johnson.
Both bids are fully funded per the outlet, but Front Office Sports reported that there are questions on whether Apostolopoulos has the “financial wherewithal” to support the bid.
The team was aiming to have a deal made before the owners meeting earlier this week, but it still seems likely a deal will be done in the near future. Falcons owner Arthur Blank said at the owners meeting that the NFL was looking to help Snyder with the “transaction and transition.”
“The league is doing whatever it can to help support the Snyders in this transaction and transition,” Blank said, per CBS Sports. “I saw Tanya this morning and wished her well, Dan as well. I think their family has moved to London, I believe. We’ll see what will happen. He’s a young man, his children are young, his wife’s young, and they have a whole life ahead of them. I certainly wish them well.”
A sale of the Commanders would require three-fourths of team owners, 24 of the 32, to approve the selected bid.
Both Snyder and his wife, Tanya, who serves as co-owner and co-CEO alongside her husband, have cleared out their offices at the team’s facility in Ashburn, Virginia. Reports suggested the offices were cleared out in December 2022. Snyder purchased the then-Washington Redskins for $800 million in May 1999 from the Cooke family.
Under Snyder’s ownership, the team has been unable to reproduce its past success. Since 1999, the team has made the NFL playoffs six times and has won the NFC East four times, producing only two playoff victories during that time.
Washington’s last Super Bowl championship was a 37-24 victory over the Buffalo Bills in the 1992 Super Bowl XXVI. The game was also the last time the team appeared in the NFL’s championship game.
The team has been publicly exploring a sale since late last year, when Snyder hired Bank of America to “consider potential transactions” regarding ownership.
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The NFL has increasingly pressured Snyder to make changes to the team in recent years. In 2020, Snyder announced the team would retire the “Redskins” name, opting to be called the “Washington Football Team” for the 2020 and 2021 seasons before rebranding as the “Commanders” in 2022.
Snyder and the team have faced scrutiny for allegations of a toxic work environment, which included sexual harassment charges by some. The House Oversight Committee examined the allegations in 2022, and the committee slammed Snyder’s testimony as “evasive” and “misleading.” Synder has denied allegations made against him.
