NFL ownership groups can be a surprisingly diverse group of people in terms of power players you wouldn’t expect to collaborate on a project.
For instance, the recently pieced-together Denver Broncos ownership group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton includes former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton. That isn’t a trio you were expecting to see linked together in any capacity, let alone one in which each has some sort of ownership stake in a professional football team. But there they are in Denver.
Despite reports of the Snyders bringing Bank of America on board to help explore the possibility of a sale of the Washington Commanders, I’m not 100 percent sure the Synders will go through with it. Maybe it’s just me, but this feels like one of those “I’ll believe it when I see it” situations. Nevertheless, I’d bet we hear a bunch of names purported to have an interest in buying the team.
And I’m not sure they’ll get any more high profile than Jeff Bezos and Jay-Z, who People (yes, People!) reports is “looking into buying” Washington’s football team:
Bezos is the heavy hitter behind the global machine that is Amazon. Jay-Z is the Greatest Rapper Alive (you Lil’ Wayne stans better not give me that look … and you mumble-rapper backers better pipe down in the back!) who is one of hip-hop’s first billionaires. Teaming those two together would be unlike any union of big money big foots we’d see try to land a football team.
It’ll be interesting to see where this story’s legs take it. Bezos reportedly has a net worth of $115 billion. And he also has a 10+ year commitment with the NFL for Amazon to be the broadcast home of Thursday Night Football. Throw in Jay-Z’s business and personal relationships with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, this story is something worth keeping an eye on to see if it grows. Especially if Daniel Snyder actually gives the green light to sell the team. Because while it feels unlikely, Snyder also once famously said he would never change the team’s name. And since we know what happened after that, perhaps anything — including a team sale — is possible.