Bezos Interested in Buying Seahawks?

[RiverDog]

In a stunning tidbit of news, tucked deep in a report from Albert Breer of Monday Morning Quarterback, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is interested in becoming the owner of the Seattle Seahawks.

Bezos, who founded Amazon in the Emerald City, has not been secret about setting his sights on the NFL. With Thursday Night Football streaming rights given exclusively to Amazon Prime, and being seen with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at games, it’s no surprise one of the wealthiest men on the planet would be interested in owning an NFL team.

The road to the NFL for Bezos likely won’t be through the Washington Commanders, as owner Daniel Snyder has reportedly banned Bezos from placing a bid on the franchise. Snyder apparently is still holding a grudge on Bezos since his newspaper, The Washington Post, reported on the toxic workplace in the franchise. However, another path to NFL ownership may present itself in the other Washington.

Breer mentions “Jeff Bezos would be as interested, if not more so, in buying the Seahawks than the Commanders” in his report.

Currently, the Seattle Seahawks are owned by the Paul G. Allen Trust, which is managed by his sister, Jody. Eventually, the Seattle Seahawks and the Portland Trail Blazers are to be sold, as Paul Allen dictated his assets be sold off for philanthropy. Although Jody Allen has admitted a time will come when both the Seahawks and Blazers are sold, that time is not now. She has already rebuked a potential report regarding Nike founder Phil Knight wanting to purchase the Trail Blazers.

While Allen remains focused on guiding her teams to success, it may not be long before another Pacific Northwest mega-billionaire comes knocking on her door with an offer.

https://news.yahoo.com/jeff-bezos-repor ... 44881.html

[Hawktawk]

Saw this . As the article states he’s shown interest before . His business lost a bit of money last year for the and I’m aware of layoffs but it’s still small potato’s to his fortune . I’d hate to see him buy it and have his fortunes go sideways. I doubt it would happen but who knows . I guess my greatest concern is uncertainty . I know there’s things to criticize with Jodi , she showed within the last year she was far more engaged and in charge then most thought and her call on Russ appears to have been correct so far . Looking around the league she’s not bad . That said this day will come and I suppose Bezos is as good as any . The salary cap prevents him from buying players but coaches and facilities not so much . Id worry about a meddler . It’s my understanding he has been somehow banned from buying the commanders and the league is considering removing snydler. Thus the interest in Seattle .
For fans it’s a crapshoot .

[RiverDog]

Saw this . As the article states he’s shown interest before . His business lost a bit of money last year for the and I’m aware of layoffs but it’s still small potato’s to his fortune . I’d hate to see him buy it and have his fortunes go sideways. I doubt it would happen but who knows . I guess my greatest concern is uncertainty . I know there’s things to criticize with Jodi , she showed within the last year she was far more engaged and in charge then most thought and her call on Russ appears to have been correct so far . Looking around the league she’s not bad . That said this day will come and I suppose Bezos is as good as any . The salary cap prevents him from buying players but coaches and facilities not so much . Id worry about a meddler . It’s my understanding he has been somehow banned from buying the commanders and the league is considering removing snydler. Thus the interest in Seattle .
For fans it’s a crapshoot .

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about Amazon's business downturn, which has already rebounded. Their sales revenue in the 4th quarter of 2022 set a record high. The two newly constructed giant warehouses that they built here in Pasco then put on hold last year when sales were slumping are starting to hire. They're not going anywhere anytime soon.

The league hasn't banned Bezos from buying the Commanders. As the article states, Snyder hates him because the newspaper that Bezos owns, the Washington Post, did a scathing article on the hostile work environment within his franchise. Since Bezos has been seen rubbing elbows with Goodell, we can assume that he's on decent terms with the league owners as I doubt that they'd allow the commissioner to be seen in public with him if they had some sort of issue with him.

Bezos' management style is often times described as autocratic, that he's a hands on manager who frequently overrules decisions made by his subordinates, but that's not necessarily a bad thing and it's not necessarily indicative of how he'd manage a professional football team. Like you said, it's a crap shoot. No one wants a Jerry Jones-style of owner, but we do want one that is responsive and doesn't just rubber stamp everything.

[NorthHawk]

Jones has been pushing for Bezos to join the NFL ownership club for quite a while now. I suspect he sees some type of arrangement with Amazon that could increase revenue. It makes me wonder if he becomes an owner, will that put him in some type of conflict of interest with the league. But NFL ownership for the very rich is a very attractive commodity what with the ever increasing revenue and favorable tax implications.
I have no idea what he would be like as an owner as he built Amazon but would be taking over an existing franchise with set rules in place, and I suspect he's a results oriented person by nature and that's not all bad.

[Hawktawk]

Autocrat = Jones doesn’t it ? Why would the guy spend 8 billion and not view it the same as his other assets ? If he knows what he’s doing maybe that isn’t a bad thing . If he’s like Penner from Denver we’re in deep trouble .
River I think this team is embarking on another window . Gotta be good and lucky . The oddsmakers have made us the least likely of all playoff teams to contend next year so here we go . Huge questions including qb but a young fast team with a boatload of draft picks , a division still in turmoil . As a fan I want to stand Pat another couple years . If Pete doesn’t at least produce a serious contender then move on. Maybe sell the team then . I think there’s a window .

[TriCitySam]

But first, there has to be a willing seller. And as the article points out, she's not inclined at this point, and earlier reports indicated there is no definitive timeline that requires a sale. So this is no story. I would like to buy them as well, but a little short of jack at this time.

[Hawktawk]

But first, there has to be a willing seller. And as the article points out, she's not inclined at this point, and earlier reports indicated there is no definitive timeline that requires a sale. So this is no story. I would like to buy them as well, but a little short of jack at this time.

LOL

[NorthHawk]

But first, there has to be a willing seller. And as the article points out, she's not inclined at this point, and earlier reports indicated there is no definitive timeline that requires a sale. So this is no story. I would like to buy them as well, but a little short of jack at this time.

Maybe I was inferring something that wasn’t stated, but I thought there was some type of wording that suggested his estate be liquidated (for a lack of a better term) as soon as possible, but it was going to be held up because of the contractual terms that would see them pay 10% of the selling price to the city. So selling before 2024 would violate the need to protect the estate in selling early and receiving a half or three quarters of a billion $ less than if the sale was postponed. Assuming the sale price would be somewhere in the $5 - $8 Billion range.

[ACES 13]

From a lifelong Seattle resident, I will say this, Jeff Bezos is like a typical billionaire only worried about his bottom line and he doesn't give up half or quarter amount of consideration or how he affects the people! I would take exception to his autocratic billionaire business methods, while exploiting all of his thousands Plus workers to amplify his bottom line! But hey, billionaires will control the world, and we don't factor into their strategy or long-term plan! Take care of y'all, watch your s i x!

[Aseahawkfan]

From a lifelong Seattle resident, I will say this, Jeff Bezos is like a typical billionaire only worried about his bottom line and he doesn't give up half or quarter amount of consideration or how he affects the people! I would take exception to his autocratic billionaire business methods, while exploiting all of his thousands Plus workers to amplify his bottom line! But hey, billionaires will control the world, and we don't factor into their strategy or long-term plan! Take care of y'all, watch your s i x!

Bezos has created more jobs and opportunities that Seattle residents don't appreciate and created a commerce system that brings low cost goods to your door. And all you can do is what? Cry that he has to take into account business considerations to do so? Bezos has not cared about the bottom line for ages, which is why Amazon stock was hammered at various points because Bezos was more concerned with the quality of the business and customer experience than he was with appeasing shareholders.

Bezos most certainly does care about the local community which is why he invested in environmentally friendly buildings like the two domes in Seattle, using recycled doors and wood as desks and such in his corporations, and allows employees to bring their dogs to work.

People focus on the low paying warehouse jobs at Amazon, but completely ignore all the high paying tech, legal, accounting, and administration jobs at Amazon. As well as the benefits, stock compensation, and other benefits of working at Amazon.

It's amazing how some Seattle folks completely overlook the benefits of having a major employer like Amazon as a bedrock of the local economy to spin their BS "billionaires bad" socialist garbage narrative while benefitting from having a such a business providing jobs, tax monies, and economic activity in the area to enrich the community. They pillory Bezos because of some article they read rather than look at some of the ways he very much does support Amazon employees with education opportunities, perks like snacks and bringing your dog to work, and the like.

Billionaires are not the bad guys people like to make them out to be. Many are very socially conscious and definitely consider the lives of their employees, but are not above having to pay market pay rates and what not in competition.

This is exactly the crap I have to listen to in Seattle: people who want prosperity but somehow think they can accomplish this without productive businesses in the area.

Bezos is pretty far from your typical billionaires. Most billionaires are anything but typical. He certainly did not inherit his money. He worked exceedingly hard to create Amazon and build it into what it was at great personal expense to his time, money, and energy. I'd be quite fine with Bezos owning the Seahawks. He's a very process oriented individual and if his goal was winning, he's going to ensure there is a process in place to accomplish just that.

[RiverDog]

But first, there has to be a willing seller. And as the article points out, she's not inclined at this point, and earlier reports indicated there is no definitive timeline that requires a sale. So this is no story. I would like to buy them as well, but a little short of jack at this time.

Maybe I was inferring something that wasn’t stated, but I thought there was some type of wording that suggested his estate be liquidated (for a lack of a better term) as soon as possible, but it was going to be held up because of the contractual terms that would see them pay 10% of the selling price to the city. So selling before 2024 would violate the need to protect the estate in selling early and receiving a half or three quarters of a billion $ less than if the sale was postponed. Assuming the sale price would be somewhere in the $5 - $8 Billion range.

I'm not an attorney, but I think that this is correct even if there isn't any language in PA's trust about maximizing the resale value. Avoiding a 10% penalty by waiting a couple of years should be an assumed right, perhaps even an obligation, of a prudent executor of the estate.

The other thing here is that since Jody has not had to put the Blazers up for sale despite the presence of a very qualified buyer, ie Phil Knight, there's nothing in the trust that requires her to sell promptly.

[RiverDog]

From a lifelong Seattle resident, I will say this, Jeff Bezos is like a typical billionaire only worried about his bottom line and he doesn't give up half or quarter amount of consideration or how he affects the people! I would take exception to his autocratic billionaire business methods, while exploiting all of his thousands Plus workers to amplify his bottom line! But hey, billionaires will control the world, and we don't factor into their strategy or long-term plan! Take care of y'all, watch your s i x!

Bezos has created more jobs and opportunities that Seattle residents don't appreciate and created a commerce system that brings low cost goods to your door. And all you can do is what? Cry that he has to take into account business considerations to do so? Bezos has not cared about the bottom line for ages, which is why Amazon stock was hammered at various points because Bezos was more concerned with the quality of the business and customer experience than he was with appeasing shareholders.

Bezos most certainly does care about the local community which is why he invested in environmentally friendly buildings like the two domes in Seattle, using recycled doors and wood as desks and such in his corporations, and allows employees to bring their dogs to work.

People focus on the low paying warehouse jobs at Amazon, but completely ignore all the high paying tech, legal, accounting, and administration jobs at Amazon. As well as the benefits, stock compensation, and other benefits of working at Amazon.

It's amazing how some Seattle folks completely overlook the benefits of having a major employer like Amazon as a bedrock of the local economy to spin their BS "billionaires bad" socialist garbage narrative while benefitting from having a such a business providing jobs, tax monies, and economic activity in the area to enrich the community. They pillory Bezos because of some article they read rather than look at some of the ways he very much does support Amazon employees with education opportunities, perks like snacks and bringing your dog to work, and the like.

Billionaires are not the bad guys people like to make them out to be. Many are very socially conscious and definitely consider the lives of their employees, but are not above having to pay market pay rates and what not in competition.

This is exactly the crap I have to listen to in Seattle: people who want prosperity but somehow think they can accomplish this without productive businesses in the area.

Bezos is pretty far from your typical billionaires. Most billionaires are anything but typical. He certainly did not inherit his money. He worked exceedingly hard to create Amazon and build it into what it was at great personal expense to his time, money, and energy. I'd be quite fine with Bezos owning the Seahawks. He's a very process oriented individual and if his goal was winning, he's going to ensure there is a process in place to accomplish just that.

I'm with ASF on this one. I get a little tired of this working class hero crap. Of course, there's going to be low paid workers at a large company like Amazon, but at least in this country, not a single one of them are exploited, especially in an economy with today's labor market where there are over 10 million job openings. There's no reason at all for any able bodied, sane minded adult to have to work at minimum wage. If the best you can do in this economy is a minimum wage job, then you have some other issue going on that a few bucks an hour more isn't going to fix.

If any Seattleite wants to get an idea of what it's like to work at a low paying job without benefits, long hours, and minimum wage pay, I suggest that they come out here to eastern Washington and work in the fields alongside the migrants and immigrants who often times work without complaint in 100 degree heat with flies swarming around them. Compare those jobs with the ones offered at Amazon. There're way more and way worse "abuses" out there.

I don't get the angst and class warfare that many people harbor against many of these billionaires, especially ones like Bezos and Gates who are self-made. We live in a free market, capitalistic society, and there are going to be financial inequities. Life's not fair, get used to it!

[NorthHawk]

As we drift off topic, I think a lot of the complaints (if that's the right word) about billionaires is that the system is set up for their advantage. It's how Bezos gets a tax refund and child tax credits even though his net worth increased by billions all the while people are struggling to make ends meet. They're just taking advantage of the rules that are in place, but we can all see that they have gained a huge influence in how the rules change to their advantage. You just have to look at Trumps trillion dollar tax cut where $750 Billion is shared with a few thousand people every year and $250 Billion is shared with 350 million people. Then you have the Dan Snyder types who are just in your face dickheads about their wealth which doesn't help.
Add into that are the billionaires who inherit their wealth and act like they are entitled to anything they want without having lifted a finger to get all the advantages in life.
I get how life is unfair, but the perception isn't good and breeds contempt for all billionaires including those that worked hard to get their fortune.

[Stream Hawk]

Might be happening relatively soon.
I wouldn’t mind as it would be cool to have an owner that is passionate about winning and willing to spend. I wish he’d also buy the Mariners!
https://twitter.com/fieldgulls/status/1 ... pMkhpLC7ng

[RiverDog]

Might be happening relatively soon.
I wouldn’t mind as it would be cool to have an owner that is passionate about winning and willing to spend. I wish he’d also buy the Mariners!
https://twitter.com/fieldgulls/status/1 ... pMkhpLC7ng

Probably not 'real soon.' More than likely, it's going to be a couple of years:

On Wednesday morning (May of 2022) during Seattle Sports Station’s Mike Salk Show, former Seahawks quarterback and longtime Seattle sports media member Brock Huard shared his own insider perspective on the state of the Seahawks franchise.

“I do have a pretty good bead on the situation as far as the Seahawks,” Huard said, “because I used to work in real estate development, and I worked for the company that actually developed the north lot of then CenturyLink Field (now Lumen Field, the Seahawks’ home stadium). And just knowing some of the ins and the outs of the contract and all the parties that were involved when Paul Allen developed that stadium, I’ve gotten on pretty good account from people pretty close to the situation.”

According to Huard, because the City of Seattle paid “hundreds of millions of dollars” to help build Lumen Field, a contract with the Seahawks includes a stipulation that would be a big hurdle to any sale until the middle of this decade, and selling the team before then is not something the trust would do due to a fiduciary responsibility.

“There was basically a poison pill enacted into the deal that said, ‘You can’t go and turn around and sell the (team)’ … until – and I’m pretty confident that it’s 2025, 2026. We’re still some years away from the trust being able to do that,” Huard said. “Otherwise, (with) that poison pill, (the Seahawks) would have had to donate hundreds of millions of dollars back to the city, and that just was not going to happen. So I don’t think a sale is imminent. I don’t think it’s within the next year or two years. It may be within four years.”

https://sports.mynorthwest.com/1622787/ ... ock-huard/

And then there's this:

The Seahawks currently aren’t for sale, quite possibly because if they are sold before May 2024, 10 percent of the proceeds will go to the State of Washington as part of the deal to build the team’s current stadium.

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... -seahawks/

[NorthHawk]

We’d expect to hear rumblings of something going on if some type of talks have begun. But these types of people run in different circles than the rest of us, so maybe Bezos and Jody have crossed paths and he told her he’s interested when the time comes. It might be that he tested the waters with the Washington franchise just to get e feel about how to go about bidding - if and/or when the team is put up for sale.

[RiverDog]

We’d expect to hear rumblings of something going on if some type of talks have begun. But these types of people run in different circles than the rest of us, so maybe Bezos and Jody have crossed paths and he told her he’s interested when the time comes. It might be that he tested the waters with the Washington franchise just to get e feel about how to go about bidding - if and/or when the team is put up for sale.

That would be awfully far in advance to do anything more than exchange phone numbers. It's a minimum of a year just for the state's poison pill, perhaps a year or two longer for the city's. Lots of things could change between now and then.

Although Bezos obviously has enough money to pay for the poison pill in both the city and the state's contracts, I doubt that he'd do it even if he was desperate to buy a team simply because the other owners and the public would interpret it as arrogance, like the rich guy caring so little about money that when his Cadilac gets dirty, he doesn't wash it, he trades it in for a new one. He's going to have a big enough problem fighting the class warfare game that comes with being the richest man in the world.

[NorthHawk]

What?
So maybe they were at a charity event and they’re just making small talk and Bezos said ‘give me a heads up when you’re getting ready to sell the Seahawks. I could be interested.’ Nothing definitive but opening the door a little.

[RiverDog]

What?
So maybe they were at a charity event and they’re just making small talk and Bezos said ‘give me a heads up when you’re getting ready to sell the Seahawks. I could be interested.’ Nothing definitive but opening the door a little.

All I'm saying is that we're getting way ahead of ourselves with this speculation about Bezos buying the Seahawks. We're at least a year away, maybe longer.

It will be interesting to see who Snyder sells his team to. He must be pretty confident to have slammed the door in the face of the world's richest man, supposedly because Bezos owns the Washington Post, the publication that played a major role in breaking the story about the hostile workplace atmosphere around the team and that the rejection is a personal vendetta that Snyder is carrying out against Bezos. The next owner is going to inherit a stadium problem, so he may not get as many people to bid as he thinks.

[NorthHawk]

I'm wondering whether Bezos really wanted the Washington franchise. He's also have to build a new stadium and the fight with the gov't levels might not be something he wanted to go through.
I still think he just dipped his toes in the water to see how things work regarding buying a team and will use that knowledge if or when he tries to buy another one.

[Hawktawk]

Apparently there are 2 potential ownership groups with the dough to buy the commanders in the 6-7 billion range . As for Jodi and Jeff Bezos I have no idea if they have any sort of relationship . I know Phil Night of Nike is also interested and would make more sense as he is much more local and also more in tune with sports as he basically funds Oregon right now . Jodi apparently would not take the phone call from Night . She has stated recently that she enjoys owning the team and is in no rush to sell it . So let’s see . Kinda like Augusta . It doesn’t matter how much money you have . They decide if you can join the club. Ask Bill Gates .
We shall see. I’m currently happy with the direction of the team , fine with ownership . Sometimes the devil you don’t know is worse than the one you do . There’s far worse owners then Jodi .

[RiverDog]

Apparently there are 2 potential ownership groups with the dough to buy the commanders in the 6-7 billion range . As for Jodi and Jeff Bezos I have no idea if they have any sort of relationship . I know Phil Night of Nike is also interested and would make more sense as he is much more local and also more in tune with sports as he basically funds Oregon right now . Jodi apparently would not take the phone call from Night . She has stated recently that she enjoys owning the team and is in no rush to sell it . So let’s see . Kinda like Augusta . It doesn’t matter how much money you have . They decide if you can join the club. Ask Bill Gates .
We shall see. I’m currently happy with the direction of the team , fine with ownership . Sometimes the devil you don’t know is worse than the one you do . There’s far worse owners then Jodi .

Apparently, Snyder has agreed to terms to sell the Commanders for just north of $6B:

Dan Snyder has a deal in place to sell the NFL's Washington Commanders for the biggest price paid for a North American professional sports team.

A group led by Josh Harris and Mitchell Rales that includes Magic Johnson has an agreement in principle to buy the team for a record $6.05 billion, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The people confirmed the deal was a fully financed, nonexclusive agreement that was not yet signed. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized.

Another person told The AP a deal hasn't been sent to the NFL for approval yet. The league declined to comment.

https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/ ... ommanders/

[Hawktawk]

One of the many unholy sleazy factors is the way the minority owners got screwed here .
They were run off by Goodell after an investigation sparked by their complaints . Snyder cooking the books , having a custom logo painted on his private jet , billing the team for advertising and billing them every time it took off .

They were sickened by his personal behavior . Goodell forced them to take a lowball offer as settlement I don’t recall the exact number but it seems it was 60 cents on the dollar or something . That Snyder has been able to survive to eventually reap this huge reward for being excrement is shameful .

And Goodell…..
He’s the single most corrupt lying Weasel as a sports commissioner I’ve ever seen. Detest the man. Snyder has something on him .

[NorthHawk]

I think the deciding factor for the owners is probably when it was disclosed that Snyder didn't fairly share the revenue and pocketed it for himself.
They'll put up with a lot of BS and scandal as long as their money isn't touched, but if they are missing a dime then it's time to move on. I'm not sure
some of the other owners aren't scumbags, too.

[RiverDog]

It would solve a lot of problems if every franchise had an ownership setup like the Packers.