While it’s still unclear whether Dan Snyder plans to sell some of his Washington Commanders franchise, there’s a growing sense around the league that the entire team will be up for sale.
That is according to multiple sources in the league who spoke to CBS Sports this week after the commanders announced on Wednesday that they had hired a bank “to consider possible transactions.”
A source familiar with the bidding process estimated the team would sell for between $5 billion and $6 billion.
It’s possible that Snyder is on the phone here, hoping to sell a fraction of the franchise to someone to get an influx of cash that he can then use to fund a much-needed new stadium. But it seems hard to find people to buy a franchise with a history of controversy under Snyder’s leadership – with no direct line to a controlling ownership stake.
It is also possible that there would be no sales at all. A source has indicated that Snyder may be doing this to buy some time and get people off him as the controversy and investigation mount.
Still, the news came just two weeks after Snyder said through a spokesperson that he and his wife, Tanya, would not consider selling the franchise. Colts owner Jim Irsay said at league owners meetings in New York in October there was merit in considering removing Snyder as owner of the Commanders amid several investigations. A source tells CBS Sports that another owner recently said privately that they didn’t believe Snyder could get out of the recent controversies to keep the property.
“I just don’t think it’s going to be that cut and dried,” said a competition source who has known Snyder for years, of a possible full sale of the team.
The NFL has opened two investigations into Snyder, both led by former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Mary Jo White. One is about an allegation of sexual assault by a former Washington employee, and the other is about alleged financial improprieties with the commanders that are more than a decade old.
Earlier this week, ESPN reported that the US law firm in the Eastern District of Virginia had opened a criminal investigation into allegations of financial wrongdoing. The office declined to comment to CBS Sports, but multiple sources said at least one person has been interviewed in connection with the potential investigation.
Roger Goodell and a league spokesperson have said there is no timeline on when the White investigations will end, although a source recently told CBS Sports that the conclusion was “more weeks than months” away. The league has promised to make the report’s findings public, contrary to Beth Wilkinson’s investigation that resulted in a fine and suspension of Snyder which, according to the league but disputed by its lawyers, is still pending.
Jason Friedman, a 24-year-old employee of the Washington franchise, told the House Committee on Oversight and Reform in March about alleged financial irregularities that had occurred at the club over several years. Using years-old emails that he kept before being fired in 2021, Friedman explained to the government the alleged plan that the team would sell tickets for one price and then log them at a lower price. Ultimately, the difference would be pocketed by the team instead of going to the revenue-sharing pool as required by league rules.
Friedman estimated that this practice was done about a dozen times, and each time it would run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. While Friedman did not directly accuse Snyder of knowing about this alleged plan, when asked if Snyder was aware of it, Friedman said, “I believe so.”
Snyder has denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
Regardless of the outcome of the investigations, the turnaround for Snyder is significant. Just as he had said for years that he would not change the team’s name, he had similarly dug in his heels that he would not consider selling the team in October. Sources believe he is feeling the mounting pressure even as the majority of team owners have heeded NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s call to keep quiet publicly and await the investigation’s findings.
“It’s cumulative. Construction is falling apart,” said one of the issues with Snyder, including the need for a new stadium. “Invoke a possible financial impropriety. It’s just not a man you want in the club.”
Who could be next in the club? Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, wholesale mortgage lender Mat Ishbia, media mogul Byron Allen and private equity investor Joshua Harris would be the top candidates for controlling property, which would require the ability to write a check for at least $2 billion to even be considered.
Because the franchise would need a stadium and because local governments appear to be working with new owners to achieve that goal, money would be needed to get a new stadium built, which could push the price down somewhat. Essentially you buy a franchise and a stadium, but the stadium is an apparent breakdown.
Allen would become the first Black controlling owner in NFL history if he eventually got his way. Other interested parties should consider adding limited partners from different backgrounds, as the competition has shown since before the Broncos sale to be an important element for new ownership.
Still, Snyder wouldn’t have to sell to the highest bidder. The Commanders wouldn’t be an auction like the Broncos were, and Snyder could choose who he sells to. Snyder choosing to sell to Bezos, owner of a newspaper Snyder says has treated him unfairly, may not happen.
A league source questioned how much Bezos is interested in the team. He owns the Washington Post, so his ties to the area are obvious. Amazon Prime has partnered with the league to deliver Thursday Night Football. And he was quite noticeable next to Goodell in the kickoff game between the Bills and Rams.
But Bezos, one of the richest people in the world, also serves as someone who can drive up the price of any team if he’s thought to be involved.
“If I’m the competition, the longer I can keep him as a stalking horse the better,” said a source.
