Let’s stop and really think about the pending purchase of the Denver Broncos by Rob Walton, and for $4.5 billion. What does it mean for the NFL’s future?
In 2019, and during CES Las Vegas, this blogger managed to get himself invited by a friend to the Oakland Raiders Sponsor Party held in Las Vegas and for the eventual Las Vegas Raiders and Allegiant Stadium. The master-of-ceremonies was Raiders Owner Mark Davis, with Dallas Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones as the main speaker. The writing on the wall at that event, for me, was clear: gambling, a staple of business in Las Vegas, would have a dramatic impact on the NFL with the Raiders relocation.
After the event, I managed to get a few minutes to talk with Mr. Jones about gambling and the Dallas Cowboys. I remarked “Is it fair to say the Cowboys would be worth $10 billion with gambling involved? Jones smiled and said “I think that’s about right.”
If we look at Rob Walton’s bid for the Denver Broncos, and consider that David Tepper paid $2.275 billion in 2018, Walton laid down $4.5 billion which about double’s Tepper’s payment and in just five short years. If that’s the case, then it’s fair to say Jerry Jones Dallas Cowboys value of $10 billion would be hit five years from now. That means Rob Walton’s price was a wild gift to existing NFL Owners.
Why?
Consider that the Denver Broncos’ new franchise value hit $4.5 billion, even though the team plays in a football stadium that’s 23 years old, and that it does not own or manage. The Metropolitan Football Stadium District does. So much for the impact of new stadiums on franchise value. This is simply reflecting one overall fact: owning an NFL team has become a hyper-expensive affair with its own unique value proposition for its owner, one based primarily on wealth, scarcity, and ego.
Stay tuned.