The NFL plans to hold a meeting in Minneapolis on Aug. 27 to discuss and vote on whether to allow institutional investors to buy shares in teams.
The association has been meeting with several private equity firms this week in hopes of finalizing a framework to present to owners, people familiar with the matter said. After those meetings, association executives and owners feel confident enough to present a potential framework to other owners.
The NFL formed a committee last year to study how the league might allow private equity firms to buy shares in teams. The group is made up of its chairman, Kansas City Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, Denver Broncos owner and CEO Greg Penner, and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Bloomberg Reported In May, owners were focused on allowing institutional investors to buy 10% of clubs. Some owners want the cap to be 5%. The league’s owners will also select a small group of approved companies to have the first opportunity to buy stakes.
The NFL has hired investment bank PJT Partners to evaluate interest from private equity investors, Sportico reported. Firms being considered include Arctus Partners LP, Ares Management Corp., Avenue Capital Group, Carlyle Group, Sixth Street and CVC Capital Partners, the people said. The league has also held meetings with Blackstone and Dynasty Equity, according to Sportico.
The NFL would be the last American professional sports league to allow private equity firms to buy shares in football teams. The NBA, whose teams are the closest to the NFL in market value, allows private equity firms to buy up to 20% of any team, and no NBA team can get more than 30% ownership from institutional investors.
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