A group led by investor Josh Harris that includes Magic Johnson has agreed to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders from longtime owner Dan Snyder and his family.
The sides announced the deal in a joint statement on Friday, roughly a month after they reached an agreement in principle on the sale for a record US$6.05 billion.
The deal is the largest for a North American professional sports franchise, surpassing the US$4.55 billion Walmart heir Robert Walton paid for the Denver Broncos last year.
Photo: AP
It is still pending approval of three-quarters of the owners and other customary closing conditions.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said league staff and its finance committee would review the details of the proposed deal.
Dan Snyder has owned the Commanders since 1999, when he bought his favorite boyhood team for US$750 million. He repeatedly said that he would never sell, but that changed after multiple investigations by the NFL and the US Congress into the Commanders’ workplace misconduct and potential financial improprieties. The congressional probe found Snyder played a role in a toxic culture.
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