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Seattle Seahawks announced their intent to sell the franchise after the victory of Super Bowl LX. Following the new release, conversations about who the next potential owner will be have been seldom. However, indications now exist that Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, and Tim Cook, former CEO of Apple, are two interested parties to buy the franchise.

Current Seahawks steward, Jody Allen, took over the franchise after the death of former Seahawks owner and her brother Paul Allen. However, her role under the directive of Paul’s will was to sell the franchise and donate the proceeds to charity.

After the Super Bowl, Paul Allen’s Estate released a message: “The Estate of Paul G. Allen today announced it has commenced a formal sale process for the Seattle Seahawks NFL franchise, consistent with Allen’s directive to eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all Estate proceeds to philanthropy. The Estate has selected investment bank Allen & Company and law firm Latham & Watkins to lead the sale process, which is estimated to continue through the 2026 off-season. NFL owners must then ratify a final purchase agreement.”

Zuckerberg and Cook are Both Billionaires

GettyFormer CEO of Apple Tim Cook announced he was stepping down on April 20th.

Zuckerberg’s net worth sits around $208.7 billion while Cook’s net worth sits around $2.9 billion. The expected price for the Seahawks currently remains around $9-11 billion, a possible record for an NFL franchise.

Zuckerberg obviously could realistically buy the Seahawks without needing additional support. However, Cook would have to find additional bidders to reach the expected evaluations based on their recorded net worth.

Reports came out that the NFL fined the Seattle Seahawks $5 million for not following through on the promised sale of the franchise. However, the NFL denied those reports that they fined the franchise for such actions.

Recently, an ownership group led by Josh Harris purchased the Washington Commanders for $6.05 billion after previous owner Dan Snyder put the franchise up for sale. The New York Giants sold a 10% stake to Julie Koch and her family, a $10 billion evaluation. The Miami Dolphins sold a 1% stake to Chinese Billionaire Lin Bin, a $12.5 billion evaluation.

A Sale of the Seahawks Will Mark the End of an Era

GettyUnder the ownership of the Allen family, the Seahawks have won two Super Bowls.

Regardless of whoever buys the Seattle Seahawks, it will mark the end of an era for the organization. The Allen family famously has removed themselves from meddling with the affairs of the front office and coaching staff. However, most importantly, they were important parts of the Seattle community, emotionally and philanthropically. The players and staff of the Seahawks adored Paul Allen. He fostered a culture of empathy.

Once the Seahawks inducted Paul Allen into the Ring of Honor after his death, former Seahawks left tackle Duane Brown said, “Him allowing players to be themselves, allowing players to express themselves, and creating that culture of a brotherhood here, it meant everything. Me being somewhere else, from the outside looking in, guys I was friends with (in Seattle), I would always tell them, ‘you guys have a really good locker room,’ and he was at the top of that. And his philanthropic work in the community, and encouraging players to be the same way, and also backing players—the Players (Equality & Justice for All Action) Fund that we have is something he really was instrumental in—that was special.”