$6B bids submitted for Commanders, sources say

NFL

The Josh Harris/Mitchell Rales group, which now includes Magic Johnson, officially submitted a fully financed bid for the Washington Commanders that meets Dan Snyder’s $6 billion asking price, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

If accepted, the deal would break the previous record sale for a franchise, set last August, when a group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton bought the Denver Broncos for $4.65 billion.

Steve Apostolopoulos, a Canadian billionaire, and Tilman Fertitta, owner of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, are among other groups interested in purchasing the Commanders. There is another anonymous group that has also toured the facilities, multiple sources involved in the process have told ESPN.

Once Snyder accepts an offer, he must submit the bidder’s name to the NFL for approval. Three-quarters of the owners would need to approve any sale.

The Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment also owns the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Devils. Harris and David Blitzer also own part of Crystal Palace FC of the English Premier League.

Harris, who grew up in Bethesda, Maryland, co-founded Apollo Management in 1990, an asset management firm. He has a net worth of $5.8 billion, according to Forbes.

Rales, a D.C. billionaire, is also part of Harris’ group. Rales has a net worth of $5.5 billion, according to Forbes.

Snyder led a group that purchased the team in 1999 for $800 million.

Last fall, with multiple investigations ongoing into the team’s workplace culture and finances, Snyder and his wife Tanya hired a firm to explore selling part or all of the team. That came two weeks after Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay said there was “merit to remove” Snyder, which would take an unprecedented vote of 24 of the other 31 owners.

ESPN’s John Keim and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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