Daniel Snyder officially agrees to sell NFL’s Washington Commanders to Josh Harris

Daniel Snyder officially agrees to sell NFL’s Washington Commanders to Josh Harris

The NFL’s Washington Commanders will soon have a new owner, as Daniel Snyder has agreed to sell the team to a group led by billionaire businessman Josh Harris.

Harris, who also owns or co-owns the NHL’s New Jersey Devils and NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers, originally agreed to buy the team for more than $6 billion on April 13. The two sides announced Friday that the agreement is now official.

“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement for the sale of the Commanders franchise with Josh Harris, an area native, and his impressive group of partners,” Tanya and Dan Snyder said in a statement. “We look forward to the prompt completion of this transaction and to rooting for Josh and the team in the coming years.”

The sale price would be a record for a North American sports franchise, far exceeding the $4.65 billion the Denver Broncos sold for last year. Harris’ group includes Washington-area billionaire Mitchell Rales and former NBA star Magic Johnson, who is also part of the ownership team for MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers.

The 58-year-old Harris grew up in the D.C. area in Chevy Chase, Md., and graduated from both the Wharton School of Business and Harvard Business School. He co-founded the private equity firm Apollo Global Management in 1990, and has an estimated net worth of more than $7 billion.

“On behalf of our entire ownership group — including Mitch Rales, my longtime sports business partner David Blitzer and Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson I want to express how excited we are to be considered by the NFL to be the next owners of the Washington Commanders and how committed we are to delivering a championship-caliber franchise for this city and its fanbase,” Harris said in a statement Friday.

“Growing up in Chevy Chase, I experienced first-hand the excitement around the team, including its three Super Bowl victories and long-term winning culture. We look forward to the formal approval of our ownership by the NFL in the months ahead and to having the honor to serve as responsible and accountable stewards of the Commanders franchise moving forward.”

Snyder, 58, had been primary owner of the Washington NFL franchise since 1999, when he purchased the team from the estate of Jack Kent Cooke for $800 million. He has been embroiled in controversy for several years, including multiple lawsuits, allegations of financial improprieties and accusations from former employees of creating a toxic workplace culture.

Most notably, Snyder agreed after years of pressure from shareholders and the general public in 2020 to change the team’s name from “Redskins,” which many viewed as a slur against Native Americans. The franchise was known as the Washington Football Team in 2020 and 2021 before choosing the name Commanders prior to last season.