NFL champions Seattle Seahawks sold to Khosla Group for record $9.6 billion

What the report says

The National Football League has unanimously approved the sale of the Seattle Seahawks to a group led by the Khosla family for $9.6 billion, making it the largest franchise sale in NFL history. The deal had been announced on July 11 and received final league approval at a special owners’ meeting in Atlanta, according to Al Jazeera’s report based on Reuters and The Associated Press.

The team was sold from the estate of Paul Allen, who bought the Seahawks in 1997 and later directed in his will that the franchise be sold and the proceeds distributed to charities. Allen died in 2018, and his sister Jody Allen had been overseeing the estate’s ownership role. The report says the sale aligns with those wishes.

Vinod Khosla, a venture capitalist and cofounder of Sun Microsystems, is part of the ownership group. Al Jazeera reported that his wife, Neeru Khosla, will serve as the controlling owner, with their son Neal also expected to play a significant role. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the family’s previous involvement with the league helped make the transaction attractive.

The Seahawks’ price is described as the second-highest valuation in North American sports history, behind recent NBA valuations. The new owners have said they intend to take a long-term approach and focus on maintaining the team’s success. The transaction may close before Seattle opens its season on September 9 against the New England Patriots.