Josh HarrisChris Szagola/Associated Press
NFL owners are set to meet July 20 to consider and potentially vote to approve the sale of the Washington Commanders, a person with knowledge of the situation said Friday.
The person said teams were notified Thursday of a special league meeting that will take place in Minneapolis. The person spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the league meeting was not announced.
Three-quarters – 24 of the league’s 32 owners – approval is needed to finalize the deal between Dan Snyder and his family and a group led by Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris. Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson is also among those involved in the incoming ownership group.
The deal is for a North American professional sports record $6.05 billion, surpassing the $4.55 billion Walmart heir Robert Walton paid for the Denver Broncos last year.
Snyder and Harris’ group had a deal in principle for the Commanders in April, then came to a firm agreement in May. One of the next steps was approval of the NFL’s finance committee before going to the full ownership group for consideration.
If approved next month, it would pave the way for new ownership to take control before the start of the regular season in September.
Snyder has owned his favorite boyhood team since 1999, when he bought it for $750 million, and despite mounting criticism repeatedly said he’d never sell. That changed after multiple investigations by the league and Congress into Washington’s workplace misconduct and potential financial improprieties. The congressional investigation found Snyder played a role in a toxic culture.
Harris’ group includes Washington-area billionaire Mitchell Rales, the basketball Hall of Famer Johnson and David Blitzer, among others. Harris and Blitzer have owned the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers since 2011 and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils since 2013.
BILLS: Buffalo locked up its brain trust tandem of General Manager Brandon Beane and Coach Sean McDermott through the 2027 season after signing the duo to two-year contract extensions.
The timing of the deals represents a reward while also emphasizing the long-term faith of co-owner Terry Pegula in the pair, who are now on their third respective contracts with the team since signing extensions in 2020. Beane, at 46, and McDermott, 49, have transformed what had been a floundering franchise upon their arrival in 2017 into a consistent playoff contender.
In that time, the Bills went from enduring a 17-year playoff drought, which was the longest active streak in North America’s four professional major sports, to qualifying for the postseason in five of the past six years. The run of success began with the team ending the drought in 2017, and now includes a four-year playoff run in which the Bills are three-time defending AFC East champions.
McDermott, who was hired in January 2017 following Rex Ryan’s dismissal, is credited with instilling a winning culture built around a trusted group of leaders headed by the safety tandem of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.
He was also praised for helping navigate the team through a series of adversity. The Bills finished second in the AFC at 13-3 in a season where safety Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest and was resuscitated on the field during a game at Cincinnati on Jan. 2. There also were two schedule disruptions because of snowstorms.
With a 62-35 record, McDermott ranks third on the franchise regular-season win list behind Marv Levy (123) and Lou Saban (70).
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