Tag: Bowlen Family

Garett Bolles eager for Walton-Penner group to build on Bowlen legacy

“The Walton-Penner group are going to come in here and take what the Bowlen family has done and just continue to run with it and build it.”

The Denver Broncos finally cleared the last legal hurdle of the ownership battle when the NFL unanimously approved the sale of the team to the Walton-Penner group earlier this month. The group — comprised of personalities such as Walmart heir Rob Walton, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton — are now the fifth ownership in team history.

Broncos offensive tackle Garett Bolles was effusive in his praise of the group, saying that they are going to build on the winning legacy of late former owner Pat Bowlen.

“[The Bowlen family] changed this whole city, and they changed this organization,” Bolles said earlier this summer. “The Walton-Penner group are going to come in here and take what the Bowlen family has done and just continue to run with it and build it.”

In their introductory press conference as a new ownership group, owner Greg Penner addressed the expectations that are in place.

“The Broncos are an iconic franchise that means so much to Denver, Colorado and the whole region,” Penner said. “Following in the footsteps of Pat Bowlen and Joe Ellis, are no small feat. Our Broncos fans have high expectations, we know that, and we embrace it. We believe that a winning team and organization require the right people, high expectations, the necessary resources, and accountability. We are committed to that, and we are going to draw on this diverse ownership group to succeed.”

While the group begins to wet their feet in the day-to-day operations of the team, Bolles expressed excitement for the future.

“I’m looking forward to all the amazing memories and all the amazing things that we are going to do and accomplish, both on the field and off the field.”

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Rob Walton group agrees to buy Broncos for $4.65 billion

A group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton has agreed to purchase the Broncos for $4.65 billion. The sale is subject to NFL approval.

A group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton has entered into a purchase and sale agreement with the Denver Broncos, the team announced late Tuesday evening.

Walton, his daughter, Carrie, and his son-in-law, Greg Penner, are leading the ownership group. The Walton-Penner group has agreed to pay $4.65 billion, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That marks the most expensive price ever paid for a U.S. sports team, more than doubling the $2.275 billion David Tepper paid for the Carolina Panthers in 2018.

The Walton-Penner group will also include “one or two” of Rob’s grandchildren, according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. The Walton-Penner group also announced Tuesday evening that Ariel Investments co-CEO Mellody Hobson will join the team’s new ownership group as well.

Hobson is a Black businesswoman who serves as Chair of the Board of the Starbucks Corporation and as a director of JPMorgan Chase. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in February that the league had encouraged the Broncos to sell to a diverse ownership group.

Rob Walton will serve as the controller owner of the team but Greg and Carrie Penner will oversee day-to-day operations, according to Klis. There’s been no official word yet on if Peyton Manning might be involved.

While the two sides have agreed to the sale, it’s not yet official. The sale will have to be approved by the NFL’s finance committee and by a majority of league owners (at least 75%). The sale is also subject to the satisfaction of customary closing procedures. The process could take several weeks or perhaps even a few months to finalize, but the sale is expected to be approved.

Former Broncos owner Pat Bowlen bought the team from Edgar Kaiser for $78 million in 1984. When his health began to decline, Bowlen set up a trust — led by Joe Ellis, Rich Slivka and Mary Kelly — to run the team and ideally pass on ownership to one of his children when a qualified candidate emerged.

Bowlen stepped down from his day-to-day duties in 2014 due to his battle with Alzheimer’s disease, and he died in 2019. A three-time Super Bowl champion, Bowlen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame less than two months after his death.

The Pat Bowlen Trust had been grooming one of Bowlen’s daughters, Brittany, to become the next owner, but not all of her siblings could agree on Brittany becoming the controlling owner. So the trust opted to sell the team, with each of Bowlen’s seven children set to receive about 11% of the sale price.

Ellis announced the team was going up for sale in February and the winning bid was accepted on June 7.

Broncos general manager George Paton and head coach Nathaniel Hackett will continue to run the team’s on-field operations.

Some of the first topics addressed by the new owners might include new (or at least revamped) uniforms and the possibility of a new stadium. Walton might want to build a modern new stadium to improve the feasibility of hosting a Super Bowl and other events in the future. As for the uniforms, Denver fans (and quarterback Russell Wilson) are partial to the team’s 1990s throwback look.

With a new owner, an energetic new coach and a new star quarterback, the future looks bright for the Broncos.

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Broncos announce team is going up for sale

“The trustees hope to have the sale completed by the start of the 2022 NFL season,” Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis said.

What was expected is now official — the Denver Broncos are going up for sale this offseason, the team has confirmed.

Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis released the following statement on Tuesday afternoon:

The Pat Bowlen Trust announced today the beginning of a sale process for the Denver Broncos. We have retained Steve Greenberg of Allen & Company as our financial advisor and Joe Leccese of Proskauer Rose LLP as our legal advisor for this transition of ownership.

Selling an NFL team is a complex process involving numerous parties and league approval procedures. Nonetheless, the trustees hope to have the sale completed by the start of the 2022 NFL season.

The Broncos are a special franchise that is part of the fabric of this region, and whoever emerges as the new owner will certainly understand what the team means to our great fans and this community.

The Bowlen family also released a statement.

When Pat Bowlen purchased the Denver Broncos in 1984 with the help of his siblings — John, Bill and Marybeth — he set out with the goal of being No. 1 in everything. Over the past 38 seasons, his vision enabled the Broncos to become champions on and off the field.

With today beginning the Broncos’ transition to new ownership, our family is overwhelmed with gratitude for what this organization and community have meant to us. There are truly no words to express our deep appreciation to all of Broncos Country for its unwavering support during the past four decades.

We will forever cherish Pat’s leadership as a Hall of Fame Owner and CEO, guiding the Broncos to three World Championships, seven Super Bowls, 13 AFC West titles and 21 winning seasons. Off the field, Pat ensured his team gave back to the Denver community with the same passion that Broncos fans displayed every Sunday in the fall.

Nothing Pat accomplished would have been possible without the players, whom he loved dearly. Thank you to those who proudly wore the Broncos jersey over the years for your commitment to winning and serving our community.

Our family is eternally grateful for the coaches, support staff and team employees for all of their contributions. Thank you for your countless sacrifices and dedication to the Broncos.

Pat used to say the Broncos belonged to the fans and that ultimately this was their team. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for this incredible ride. It has been the honor of our lifetime.

All of us know that the impact of ‘Mr. B’ will live on with the Broncos and in the hearts, minds and memories of the fans.

We will always cheer for the Orange and Blue. Go Broncos!

The Broncos are worth about $3.75 billion, according to a recent estimate from Forbes, but an auction-style sale will likely draw a price of more than $4 billion, which would break a U.S. record for the highest price paid for a professional sports team.

Selling the team could take months to finalize, but Denver hopes to have the process completed before the start of the 2022 NFL season.

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Robert F. Smith named a ‘possible bidder’ if the Broncos go up for sale

Robert F. Smith has an estimated net worth of $6.7 billion.

Robert F. Smith “has emerged as one of the possible bidders” to buy the Denver Broncos this offseason, according to Michael McCarthy and A.J. Perez of FrontOfficeSports.com.

Smith, 59, was born and grew up in Denver before going on to earn his bachelor’s from Cornell University and master’s from Columbia University. He now serves as the Chairman & CEO of Vista Equity Partners and owns homes in Texas, California, New York, Florida and Colorado.

The Broncos are expected to be sold this year in an auction-style sale that would award the franchise to the highest bidder. The team is worth $3.75 billion — according to an estimate from Forbes — but the club could go for more than $4 billion in a bidding scenario.

Smith as an estimated net worth of $6.7 billion, according to Forbes.

The businessman is also a philanthropist, notably donating $34 million to pay the student loan debts of 400 Morehouse graduates and their parents in 2019.

If he does bid to buy the Broncos, Smith would need approval from 75% of NFL owners for a potential purchase to be completed. One potential factor that might be considered in such a vote is Smith’s history with federal authorities, according to Front Office Sports:

After a lengthy investigation, Smith entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice in October 2020 that spared him criminal charges over allegations that he did not report $200 million of income to the IRS and used bank accounts in the British Virgin Islands and Switzerland to conceal assets.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and rapper/businessman Jay-Z have also been linked to the Broncos, but Peter King of NBC Sports reported last October that Bezos is not interested in buying the team.

Former quarterbacks John Elway and Peyton Manning, who both won Super Bowls in Denver, are interested in joining the next potential ownership group as minority owners.

The Broncos will make an announcement on their ownership plan (presumably an announcement of going up for sale) after the team hires a new head coach.

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Potential auction-style sale would award Broncos to highest bidder

If the Broncos have an auction-style sale, the highest bidder would be awarded the team (so long as other NFL owners approve).

The Denver Broncos are expected to hit the market this offseason, and the people currently running the team might not have much say on who becomes the next owner.

The Pat Bowlen Trust — Joe Ellis, Rich Slivka and Mark Kelly — “have a fiduciary duty to the beneficiaries to get the highest possible price, pending NFL approval,” according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis.

The trust has been running the team since Bowlen stepped down to battle Alzheimer’s in 2014, five years before his death. The trust is now expected to have an auction-style sale to award the team to the highest bidder.

Such a sale would be good news for Bowlen’s beneficiaries — his seven children (who each own 11.14%) and his brother John (22%). It might not necessarily put the team in the best possible hands, though.

But as Klis noted, the league’s 31 ownership groups would have to approve of Denver’s new owner, so there is a possible scenario in which the highest bidder could fail to buy the team if NFL owners do not approve.

For now, the Broncos remain focused on hiring a new coach. After that, they will make an announcement regarding the ownership situation.

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Legal battle won, Broncos can now move toward sale

The Broncos are now one step closer to likely being sold.

Story update: A Denver judge has ruled that ROFR Holdings Ltd.’s “right of first refusal is no longer valid or enforceable in any respect,” according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. That has cleared the final roadblock for the Broncos to potentially move toward a sale. See our original post below.

The Denver Broncos are expected to be sold this spring, but an ongoing legal dispute has seemingly slowed down the process.

In his end-of-season press conference on Sunday, Broncos president/CEO Joe Ellis said he can’t provide an update on the team’s ownership situation until the legal matter is resolved.

“I think most of you are familiar of the fact that we are in a trial — a case in the hands of the court and the right of first refusal case — between Edgar Kaiser and Pat Bowlen,” Ellis said. “Out of respect for the court, I’m going to wait and get back to you at a later date on that …. I want the court to be able to let its process see through to the end.

“From there, I’ll be able to get back to you and let you know where things stand. I don’t have a timeline on that, but I just want to respect the court and let the judge decide what decision will be rendered at what time. It’s certainly her decision.”

ROFR Holdings Ltd. claims to have the right of first refusal passed down from Kaiser, who sold the team to Bowlen in 1984. The Broncos argue that the ROFR agreement between Bowlen and Kaiser is no longer valid because both men have since died. Now the court has to decide.

In the meantime, a potential sale remains on hold.

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