The Seattle Seahawks have agreed to sell the franchise for $9.6 billion to a group led by San Francisco 49ers limited partner Vinod Khosla, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Seth Wickersham.
The sale would represent a new NFL record for the highest price ever paid for a team. The Seahawks confirmed the agreement without acknowledging the terms.
The Seahawks went up for sale after winning Super Bowl LX. The franchise, previously owned by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, is managed by his estate, which was instructed to sell his sports holding and direct the proceeds to philanthropic causes.
“We are honored to be entrusted as the next stewards of the Seattle Seahawks,” Khosla said in a statement on behalf of his family. “We look forward to building on the winning legacy Paul Allen created and to earning the trust of the Seahawks organization and fans everywhere.”
NFL owners must approve the sale before the change in ownership goes through. The league has a meeting scheduled for Aug. 26 to vote on it, according to Schefter.