RENTON, Wash. – At some point, it was bound to happen. Word was going to come out that per the wishes of late owner Paul Allen, the Seahawks were going to be sold.
The week before the Super Bowl is not the timing anyone expected. But there it was on Friday when ESPN first reported that sometime following Super Bowl 60, current team chair Jody Allen is expected to initiate the process that will eventually lead to the sale of the Seahawks.
A statement from the estate of Paul Allen refuted some of ESPN’s original report later Friday saying, “We don’t comment on rumors or speculation, but the team is not for sale,” while it also acknowledged that a sale would happen at some point.
Either way, it provides a storyline that will follow the Seahawks down to the Bay Area for the Super Bowl. The situation surrounding the Seahawks and their future ownership is likely to be a question posed to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during his pre-Super Bowl news conference on Monday in San Jose.
For now, here’s a rundown of what we know, why now and what it could mean for the landscape of Seattle sports when a sale of the franchise finally takes place.
Seahawks for sale?
No. Well, not officially as of Jan. 31, 2026. There is no for sale sign sitting outside the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
Jokes aside, eventually that answer will become a yes. And potentially soon. The franchise is to be sold as per the stipulations from Paul Allen before his death that his estate be liquidated and the vast amount of his wealth be dispersed to philanthropic endeavors and charitable organizations. The sports franchises he owned – the Seahawks and the Portland Trail Blazers – were always going to be toward the end of the process, especially as franchises valuations across all sports have skyrocketed in recent seasons. Allen purchased the Seahawks for $194 million in 1997 to keep the team from being moved to Southern California by then-owner Ken Behring.
The timing of the Seahawks potentially being sold sometime in 2026 also makes sense. The Allen Estate agreed to the sale of the Trail Blazers to a group led by Tom Dundon – the primary owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes – last summer. It was the first domino of the sports portfolio to fall. The next will be the Seahawks.
Why leak now?
Whispers have been out there for a little while that Jody Allen and the Allen Estate intended to go to market with the team sometime after the 2025 season concluded no matter the success of the team. Seattle playing in the Super Bowl for the first time in 11 years and a week in between the conference championship game and the Super Bowl provided a nice opportunity for someone to pass along word to some intrepid reporters that this is likely to happen. A distraction for the NFC champs? Maybe for some folks in the front office. Probably not for the guys who will be on the field.
What’s the price?
ESPN’s report pegged the price in the ballpark of $7-8 billion. That would fall in line with the continued rise in team valuations as the last NFL sale – the Washington Commanders – went for just more than $6 billion. At the time, the sale of the Commanders set a record for the largest sale of a pro sports franchise in any sport.
Since the sale of the Commanders, the Boston Celtics were sold at a valuation $6.1 billion and the Los Angeles Lakers at a valuation of $10 billion. Those are NBA teams – albeit marquee franchises that transcend all sports. But the NFL is king and without question a sale of the Seahawks would set a new benchmark. The number might be a bit loftier if it comes after the Seahawks hoist another Lombardi Trophy.
Who has $7 billion?
That will be the big question once the process starts. Who will jump in?
It’s no secret that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was heavily involved in the Commanders sale bidding before it was eventually sold to a group led by Josh Harris. Group is the key word there as the current sale prices for any team across any professional sports league – men or women – is at a point where it’s going to become increasingly rare for a single individual to foot the bill. There’s only so many super-duper rich people in the world able to drop a check for $7 billion and not have it make a dent in their accounts. Bezos is one. Steve Ballmer is another, although he has his own well-documented issues currently as owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.
What does it mean for Seattle sports?
That’s very much to be determined. Will an eventual new owner or ownership group be from here or have any Seattle connection? Would a potential sale that sets an NFL record for highest price raise the valuations of the other teams – Mariners, Kraken, Storm, Sounders, Reign – currently in the market and put Seattle on a loftier pedestal as a sports market?
And could a sale of the Seahawks impact a franchise that doesn’t yet exist? The NBA seems set on deciding on expansion in 2026. Should the NBA move ahead, that will be another massive sum of money needed for an expansion fee. Could an individual or group currently keeping close watch on the NBA process pivot their investment toward the chance of being involved on a sale of the Seahawks?
They’re all questions that won’t have answers until the Seahawks hit the open marketplace. And there’s a little game a week from now that comes first.