Dan Snyder gets $6B buyout offer for Washington Commanders, sources say
Billionaire Dan Snyder has received a $6 billion buyout offer for the Washington Commanders NFL franchise — a sum that reportedly meets his asking price and surpasses a rival bid separately submitted in recent weeks, The Post has learned.
Josh Harris — the Wall Street mogul who owns the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils — partnered with defense contracting tycoon Mitchell Rales and NBA legend Magic Johnson to submit the $6 billion bid, sources said.
That’s above a $5.6 billion bid that was submitted in recent weeks by Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, who signaled at the time to Snyder’s camp his offer was final and that he was not willing to go higher, according to sources close to the negotiations.
Some insiders speculated that Harris’ bid might have conditions attached such that it doesn’t amount to a cash guarantee for $6 billion — a sum that would break last year’s NFL record price of $4.65 billion when Walmart heir Rob Walton bought the Denver Broncos.
A spokesperson for Harris declined to comment.
A spokesperson for Fertitta couldn’t immediately be reached.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the first to report on the Harris offer.
Meanwhile, speculation is simmering that Snyder — who, as reported by The Post, signed a confidentiality agreement with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos several weeks ago — is concerned that Bezos is not going to make an offer.
Bezos — whose net worth is currently estimated by Forbes at more than $121 billion — could easily outbid Harris and Fertitta. Nevertheless, there previously have been reports that Snyder has been reluctant to sell to Bezos because he owns the Washington Post, which published a series of exposes about sexual harassment and financial irregularities at the team under Snyder.
Despite the controversies, the NFL does not have the votes needed among the owners to force him out, The Post reported exclusively several weeks ago.
One major sticking point in the sale of the team — aside from the eye-popping asking price — is Snyder’s demand to be indemnified from any future litigation against him by the league, Bezos’ paper reported.
It went on to cite a source who said the sales process may now drag out into the summer or even after kickoff in the fall.
The Commanders, NFL and Bezos declined to comment.
