NFL Owners Near Approval of Record $9.6 Billion Seattle Seahawks Sale
The Seattle Seahawks have a new owner waiting in the wings, and the paperwork just cleared a big hurdle. Two NFL committees gave their unanimous blessing to a $9.612 billion sale of the team to a group led by the Khosla family — a number that would make it the most expensive purchase of a football franchise ever.
The finance committee and the ownership policy committee sat down, reviewed the deal, and signed off without a single dissent. That was one of the last checkpoints standing between the Khoslas and full ownership.
Now it heads to the full room. All 32 clubs will vote on the sale at a special meeting in Atlanta, and three-quarters of them need to say yes for it to go through. Given how the committees voted, that's not expected to be much of a fight.
If the timeline holds, the deal could close in September — possibly before Seattle even kicks off its regular season.
The Allen Era Comes to a Close
The Seahawks have belonged to Paul Allen's estate since the Microsoft co-founder died in 2018. His sister has run the team on the estate's behalf ever since.
Allen bought the club decades ago for a small fraction of what it's selling for now, and he's largely remembered for keeping it in Seattle when there was real risk of it leaving. His will made clear the team was eventually meant to be sold, with the money going toward charity — and that process kicked off officially earlier this year.
A deal with the Khosla group came together last month after a competitive process that reportedly also included a bid from a steel executive teamed up with a well-known NBA figure.
Who's Actually Buying the Team
The public face of the new ownership will be Neeru Khosla — wife of venture capitalist Vinod Khosla — who's set to be the controlling owner on paper. Vinod already owns a small piece of another NFL franchise, and he'll have to sell that off before this deal can close.
Their son is expected to take on a real leadership role in the new group once things are finalized. Exactly who else is involved hasn't been disclosed yet — league rules allow for up to two dozen people in an ownership group, though whoever's in the lead has to put up a sizable stake without financing it.
What Happens From Here
People who watch this stuff for a living say the unanimous committee vote is about as good a sign as you'll get that the sale is on track. It's rare for something this size to move this cleanly.
There's also a broader case being made for why Seattle isn't going anywhere: the team's been competitive, and the city's turn hosting World Cup matches this year only added to the argument that Lumen Field and the market around it are worth holding onto.
Assuming the vote goes the way everyone expects, this becomes the priciest sale in NFL history — another data point in just how far franchise values have climbed across pro sports in recent years.
