Seahawks to be Sold

Seymour

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Sounds like some clarity about the future of the Seahawks is coming to light. We don't have any time frame yet, but I'd be surprised if this takes more than 2 years myself.

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports...aul-allen-foundation-team-to-stay-in-seattle/

Some clarity as to the future ownership of the Seahawks was revealed via an NFL.com report Sunday morning. It said the team is expected to be sold by Paul Allen’s estate with proceeds going to his foundation, and the team staying in Seattle.

Allen’s sister, Jody, has taken a more visible role with the team since Allen’s death on Oct. 15, with Allen’s good friend, Bert Kolde, the vice chairman of the team, retaining his role.

[ GameCenter | Live updates, highlights from Seahawks-Rams » ]

The report states that no sale is imminent, but a succession plan was filed with the NFL, as required. The plan detailed the likely course of events and noted that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said the team will remain in Seattle.
 

Sgt. Largent

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Saw this yesterday.

I was hoping Jody would keep the team and just keep the existing hierarchy of football operations in place for the foreseeable future.

Now we have the unknown of a new owner, and what he/she/they might do to the extremely functional operations of the team..................getting a Jerry Jones or a moron like Mark Davis would be worst case scenario.
 

kidhawk

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Sgt. Largent":3u8h741o said:
Saw this yesterday.

I was hoping Jody would keep the team and just keep the existing hierarchy of football operations in place for the foreseeable future.

Now we have the unknown of a new owner, and what he/she/they might do to the extremely functional operations of the team..................getting a Jerry Jones or a moron like Mark Davis would be worst case scenario.

I saw this yesterday too, shortly before kick-off and it kind of bummed me out. I am happy that the team will be sure to stay in Seattle and that they aren't rushing to sell, but now we get to wait and be concerned about who comes up with the $2.5+ billion and what direction they'll take us in.
 

hawknation2018

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I’m sure they will make a great decision on the new ownership. Hoping they keep it in the Microsoft/Seattle family.

Steve Ballmer or Bill Gates.

Whomever they choose will continue Paul Allen’s tremendous legacy and the foundation can focus on doing good works. Makes sense.
 

TreeRon

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If 2 million people ponied up $1000.00 we could raise $2 billion.
Could we get 2 million Oregonians, Washingtonians, Idahoans and a few Montanians ?
 

KiwiHawk

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I had hopes that the team would be willed to the city of Seattle as a publicly-traded entity with a portion of the proceeds of the IPO being used to buy out Century Link's naming rights in perpetuity, so it could become Paul G Allen Field, and the remainder reverting to Allen's Estate in exchange for handing the team over to the city.

A pipe dream - I am pretty sure after Green Bay that the NFL disallowed public ownership of an NFL franchise because they don't want a team's books to be open to public scrutiny.

Of course, Bill Gates could do this as a favour to his former business partner with the change he finds in his sofa.
 
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Seymour

Seymour

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Well I did not think Gates was even a Seahawks fan.....but I was wrong!

[tweet]https://twitter.com/BillGates/status/430107147398307840[/tweet]
 

brimsalabim

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I’m pretty sure that I have read that the Chargers are about to hit the market too?
 

chris98251

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Seymour":2k87asts said:
Sounds like some clarity about the future of the Seahawks is coming to light. We don't have any time frame yet, but I'd be surprised if this takes more than 2 years myself.

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports...aul-allen-foundation-team-to-stay-in-seattle/

Some clarity as to the future ownership of the Seahawks was revealed via an NFL.com report Sunday morning. It said the team is expected to be sold by Paul Allen’s estate with proceeds going to his foundation, and the team staying in Seattle.

Allen’s sister, Jody, has taken a more visible role with the team since Allen’s death on Oct. 15, with Allen’s good friend, Bert Kolde, the vice chairman of the team, retaining his role.

[ GameCenter | Live updates, highlights from Seahawks-Rams » ]

The report states that no sale is imminent, but a succession plan was filed with the NFL, as required. The plan detailed the likely course of events and noted that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has said the team will remain in Seattle.



No sale imminent but they had to file a succession plan. This could be 1 year or ten years, I am sure they have to line up potential suitors, Chris Hansen, Bill Gates etc types maybe Steve Balmer.
 

hawknation2018

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Forbes estimates the Seahawks’ value at $2.58 billion:
https://www.forbes.com/teams/seattle-seahawks/

Paul’s foundation will do a lot of good with that money. Of course, it could sell for more than that.

Forbes estimated the Clippers’ value at $570 million before Ballmer purchased the team for $2 billion (and made some kind of guarantee that he would not relocate LA’s forgotten basketball team to Seattle, where they would be more appreciated). Major sports teams are very limited commodities. They almost always sell for more than the pure revenue models would indicate.
 

semiahmoo

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Whispers say Bill Gates is interested.

Would be a nice gesture to the guy who was at his side during the building of an empire days.

We shall see.
 

WmHBonney

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This ownership issue worries me more than any player/coach issue. A bad owner will put a team in the basement quick as shit. And they will stay there. There is a reason the 'Hawks' best years have been under Paul Allen's rule.
 

TwistedHusky

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We were really fortunate to have Allen.

I think his sister was on record in not wanting to be an owner. So a sale was an expectation. Not sure anyone should be shocked by this.

We won't get as good as Allen but we had an owner as bad as Behring, so we got the opposite in Allen.

These were the best years in Seahawk history and we were fortunate to enjoy it. So the next owner is probably a step down. That is OK because almost any owner would be a step down from Allen.

We should still be able to keep our team though.

I don't think the NFL would abandon the PNW, an area with this much money and surrounding regions that support.

However, I do feel bad for Trailblazer fans. Portland is a great city but don't know if they are going to find another owner for them.

I expect we won't lose our team. But I will be on pins and needles a bit until this is addressed.
 

hawknation2018

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TwistedHusky":h69n2cdm said:
We were really fortunate to have Allen.

I think his sister was on record in not wanting to be an owner. So a sale was an expectation. Not sure anyone should be shocked by this.

We won't get as good as Allen but we had an owner as bad as Behring, so we got the opposite in Allen.

These were the best years in Seahawk history and we were fortunate to enjoy it. So the next owner is probably a step down. That is OK because almost any owner would be a step down from Allen.

We should still be able to keep our team though.

I don't think the NFL would abandon the PNW, an area with this much money and surrounding regions that support.

However, I do feel bad for Trailblazer fans. Portland is a great city but don't know if they are going to find another owner for them.

I expect we won't lose our team. But I will be on pins and needles a bit until this is addressed.

The sale of the team, with proceeds going to his charitable foundation, was reportedly Paul Allen’s plan.

I trust they will take great care to ensure that whoever owns the team, whenever they decide to sell, will continue Paul’s legacy.
 

KitsapGuy

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The price tag would be a big one, with the team “likely to set a record for most expensive North American sports franchise ever purchased,” Rapoport said. Allen paid $194 million in 1996. The Seahawks would likely fetch closer to $3 billion these days.

Who could afford to play at that level? A few other billionaires with Seattle ties come to mind:

Bill Gates: Would Allen’s old pal step in to acquire the Hawks as a tribute to his Microsoft co-founder? Gates certainly has the resources to purchase the team and keep it running as one of the premiere franchises in all of sports. But it’s hard to picture Gates having any interest in professional sports outside of tennis. And he’s got his hands full trying to save the world from a myriad of other problems that have nothing to do with an offensive line.


Jeff Bezos: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said during NFL meetings this fall that he would carry the Amazon founder “piggyback” to get him to buy an NFL franchise. As the richest man on the planet, it’s just a matter of whether Bezos wants to spend more money on Earth when so much of his focus is dedicated to getting off of it. Blue Origin, rockets, space travel and Mars exploration are bigger bets for Bezos. But with Amazon being floated as a possible name that could be attached to the former Safeco Field baseball stadium (Prime Park?), don’t be surprised if the company and its CEO would go big in Seattle in another attempt to win hearts in the city it has impacted so greatly.

Steve Ballmer: Another Microsoft billionaire who actually has a love for pro sports, Ballmer seems like a natural fit to own both an NBA team (the Los Angeles Clippers) and an NFL team. Allen certainly pulled that off as the longtime owner of the Portland Trail Blazers in addition to his Seahawks love. And Ballmer is doing interesting things with technology to heighten the fan experience with the Clippers that could be fun to see implemented in the tech-loving city that the Seahawks call home.

Howard Schultz: The former Starbucks CEO … nevermind. Nope.

https://www.geekwire.com/2018/paul-alle ... d-schultz/
 

lobohawk

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Don't bother with Bezos or he'll turn it into the first team with three home fields (Seattle, NY, DC)
 

Lords of Scythia

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KitsapGuy":a4xzfr9o said:
The price tag would be a big one, with the team “likely to set a record for most expensive North American sports franchise ever purchased,” Rapoport said. Allen paid $194 million in 1996. The Seahawks would likely fetch closer to $3 billion these days.

Who could afford to play at that level? A few other billionaires with Seattle ties come to mind:

Bill Gates: Would Allen’s old pal step in to acquire the Hawks as a tribute to his Microsoft co-founder? Gates certainly has the resources to purchase the team and keep it running as one of the premiere franchises in all of sports. But it’s hard to picture Gates having any interest in professional sports outside of tennis. And he’s got his hands full trying to save the world from a myriad of other problems that have nothing to do with an offensive line.


Jeff Bezos: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said during NFL meetings this fall that he would carry the Amazon founder “piggyback” to get him to buy an NFL franchise. As the richest man on the planet, it’s just a matter of whether Bezos wants to spend more money on Earth when so much of his focus is dedicated to getting off of it. Blue Origin, rockets, space travel and Mars exploration are bigger bets for Bezos. But with Amazon being floated as a possible name that could be attached to the former Safeco Field baseball stadium (Prime Park?), don’t be surprised if the company and its CEO would go big in Seattle in another attempt to win hearts in the city it has impacted so greatly.

Steve Ballmer: Another Microsoft billionaire who actually has a love for pro sports, Ballmer seems like a natural fit to own both an NBA team (the Los Angeles Clippers) and an NFL team. Allen certainly pulled that off as the longtime owner of the Portland Trail Blazers in addition to his Seahawks love. And Ballmer is doing interesting things with technology to heighten the fan experience with the Clippers that could be fun to see implemented in the tech-loving city that the Seahawks call home.

Howard Schultz: The former Starbucks CEO … nevermind. Nope.

https://www.geekwire.com/2018/paul-alle ... d-schultz/
Why'd you have to go there on that last one! I spewed! Seattle definitely has horrible luck with franchises being sold. Amazon is already the company that built Seattle in the 21st century, so that one seems like kind of a no-brainer. Ballmer seems like the ultimate owner. Somebody already said we couldn't possibly get a better owner than PGA--somebody who knows how to get the best available talent, then stay hands-off. Another nightmare would be an Al Davis type.
 

pmedic920

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semiahmoo":qhglrjzk said:
Whispers say Bill Gates is interested.

Would be a nice gesture to the guy who was at his side during the building of an empire days.

We shall see.

Got a link?

“Whispers” like these should include one.
 
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