Denver Broncos Sold For Record $4.65 Billion

How the Denver Broncos kicked off their offseason was nothing short of an overhaul.

A new era is what is currently defined at the Mile High camp after tremendous changes came into effect on both a management and player level.

The addition of Russell Wilson in March marked a significant signing for the franchise. Little did we know that 3 months later the organization was on the brink of restructuring new ownership.

New Money, New Quarterback

Now in the hands of accomplished businessmen and women, a historic announcement came out from The Broncos on June 7th, stating that the Walton-Penner family ownership group have entered a purchase-sale agreement with them after nearly 40 years of Bowlen leadership.

Sources revealed that it is said to be a record-asking price of $4.65 billion, now recorded as the highest purchase in North American sports franchise history. The Carolina Panthers were the last NFL team to be sold at this level, a process that took close to 7 months under the auspice of David Tepper, netting more than $2 billion. The Broncos fetched double that due to sports betting and TV deals.

Headed by Rob Walton, an heir to the Walton fortune, and comprising the ownership group further with the heiress Carrie Walton Penner, and son-in-law Greg Penner, they have succeeded Joe Ellis who took over as president of The Broncos since Pat Bowlen stepped down as CEO in July 2014 due to a progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

The sale is subject to be reviewed over 60-90 days long process by the NFL’s finance committee for it to be approved, after being submitted over a vote among other NFL owners.

Elway Fumbles The Bag, Broncos Fumbled The Ball

We have established by now that the previous Broncos have fumbled the bag, let alone the ball on the pitch. They’ve lost their winning ways since Super Bowl 50 in 2015, which also registers as their last playoff appearance.

The lesson that went almost unnoticed here is how ex-President of Football Operations, John Elway, became a major part of this fumbling process from an individual capacity. Despite the internal issues involving Pat Bowlen’s beneficiaries, and especially children, the former quarterback missed an opportunity of bagging $900 million falling short of a costly mistake from 1998.

As we understood, he came up the ranks of Denver over 16 years of an illustrious career, collecting 2 Super Bowl titles, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Super Bowl MVP, NFL MVP, and 9 times Pro Bowl. The organization took pride in his ability to make good business decisions, notably accumulating $45 million from NFL contracts and millions in endorsements, aside from the $82.5 million he acquired through the sale of 5 car dealerships in 1997.

Within a year, Pat Bowlen then Denver Broncos owner, offered Elway a deal that detailed 10% of the team in exchange for the $21 million he was owed by them, and an additional 10% at the value of $15 million. Essentially, Elway would own 20 percent of the Broncos for $36 million out of pocket.

In 1999, amidst his quest of chasing one more title before he bows out of the NFL as a player, he had a settling moment of 10 months which later revealed his lack of interest. As far as lucrativity, he felt that his money ideally suited some service-based investments and more so a $15 million which directly went to a hedge fund manager. Unbeknownst, the hedge fund manager would end up getting jailed for 40 years and not to mention the dismal failure of all the other projects.

As might be expected the current stature of his equity stake, by the time the sale agreement was made by the Walton-Penner Group, Elway’s stake was valued at nearly a billion. Needless to say that he fumbled a 1,330% ROI, despite doing well for himself in other respects with a reported $150 million net worth.

New Era, New Meaning To Sam’s Club

And now that we are here, it is clear that one man’s waste is another man’s soap. This new endeavor initiated by the Walton-Penner ownership group brings a new meaning to Sam’s club.

While we watched Sam Walton’s descendants display a masterclass of business, the NFL and North American sports history also became re-written in a sense. 

Hopefully, we’d also see the tradition of Broncos again winning football titles after enhancing their resources, as much as you are also standing a good chance of winning bets as sports betting is a major part of their lucrativeness. Your bag is waiting to get claimed here on New Jersey Online Casinos.

What comes next remains to be seen.