Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Jeff Bezos and Jay-Z are among those interested in buying the Washington Commanders, per reports
With the news on Wednesday that Dan and Tanya Snyder have retained Bank of America Securities to “consider potential transactions” regarding the Washington Commanders, various names have been linked to a potential purchase of the franchise.
New reporting, however, indicates that Amazon owner and founder Jeff Bezos is “interested” in purchasing the team, alongside a partner.
Jay-Z.
According to this report from TMZ, Jay-Z has expressed serious interest in purchasing the team. But the rap icon and businessman is not alone. Bezos, who in addition to founding Amazon also owns The Washington Post, is also interested in purchasing the Commanders. Sources close to Bezos told People Magazine that Bezos is “looking into buying the Washington Commanders,” and “possibly in partnership” with Jay-Z.
This is not Bezos’ first foray into the NFL, and into the idea of NFL ownership. Back in 2019 Jason LaCanfora of CBS Sports reported that Bezos was not only “interested” in owning an NFL franchise, but that he enjoyed “strong support within the league to eventually join their ranks.”
Furthermore, Bezos and Amazon recently began broadcasting Thursday Night Football on Amazon’s streaming platform, Prime Video.
Jay-Z and Bezos are not the only names linked to the franchise in recent days. According to a report from Bloomberg Byron Allen, the founder, owner and CEO of Entertainment Studios, is “preparing a bid” for the franchise. This would be Allen’s second attempt at purchasing an NFL team. Back in February, Allen put together a bid for the Denver Broncos, after being approached by current New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Commissioner Roger Goodell regarding a potential purchase of a team back in 2019.
Of course, whether the Snyders indeed sell the team remains to be seen. Dan Snyder has long maintained that he would never sell the franchise, and explosive reporting from ESPN in recent weeks illustrated just how far Snyder was willing to go to maintain his ownership of the Commanders.
But with the franchise now under investigation in the Eastern District of Virginia for alleged financial impropriety, perhaps the day is coming when the Snyders indeed sell the franchise.
And it seems there is no shortage of potential buyers.
