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Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Reports: Twins sale has momentum toward $1.7B asking price
May 29 - Minnesota Twins ownership is making progress toward a sale of the major league team, with several prospective buyers touring Target Field and meeting with the Pohlad family, according to multiple media reports. The Pohlad family, which has owned the Twins since 1984, announced in October 2024 that the franchise was for sale, with a $1.7 billion asking price. The Pohlads retained investment bank Allen & Company to guide a potential sale. Front Office Sports reported on Wednesday that there is momentum toward a sale after the process had stalled earlier this year. Billionaire suitors Mat and Justin Ishbia ended their interest in buying the team and instead, according to reports, increased their stake in the Chicago White Sox in February. The Minnesota Star Tribune reported Tuesday that other suitors have traveled to Minneapolis in the past two to three weeks to tour the stadium and meet with the family and team executives. The Pohlads rejected a bid of $1.5 billion, according to Front Office Sports. The franchise is valued at $1.65 billion, 22nd out of 30 MLB teams, according to CNBC calculations last month. Forbes and Sportico estimated in March that the Twins are valued between $1.5 billion and $1.7 billion. For a recent comparison, the Baltimore Orioles were sold in 2024 for a reported $1.725 billion to private-equity executive David Rubinstein. One possible friction point for potential buyers is the Twins' $452 million in debts, according to multiple reports. The late Carl Pohlad paid $44 million to buy the Twins. Since his death in 2009, his son Jim has been the controlling owner. Jim's nephew, Joe Pohlad, has been handling primary administration responsibilities since 2022. --Field Level Media
New York Times
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Twins making ‘progress' on sale of club, Pohlads sticking to $1.7 billion price: Source
Though the Minnesota Twins are making progress in finding potential buyers, the Pohlad family remains firm in its desire for a $1.7 billion price tag, potentially extending the process. A person briefed on the Twins' pivot since Chicago billionaire Justin Ishbia abandoned his bid to buy the club in late January described the team's headway as 'good' and the potential backers as 'high quality parties,' saying the groups included multiple anchor/lead investors. Advertisement But with the Twins sticking to their asking price and concerns from interested parties about the team's future revenues, the end game remains fluid more than 7 1/2 months after the Pohlads announced they would explore selling the team. New York City-based capital market company Allen & Company is handling the sale of the club, which Carl Pohlad bought from Calvin Griffith for $44 million in 1984. In March, the Twins were estimated to be worth between $1.5 billion and $1.7 billion by Forbes and Sportico, respectively. 'There's no deadline,' the source said Tuesday. 'We're dealing with multiple parties, and whoever gets to the finish line first will be the winning party. (The Pohlads are) prepared to wait until the right deal comes along.' A winning bid could materialize at any time. The team was confident enough in its worth in March to deem an interested party's $1.5 billion valuation as a non-starter. Still, multiple people with knowledge of the sale process said potential buyers noted several concerns. First and foremost is the potential for an MLB owners lockout after the 2026 season concludes, a disruption that would immediately impact revenue for a new owner. Those sources also noted the loss of broadcast revenue associated with the team moving on from FanDuel Network, to Twins TV, an MLB-based product, after its most recent contract expired. Another concern: the $425 million-plus of debt accrued during the Pohlad's tenure as owners, according to multiple people briefed on the sale process, which is one of the highest figures among MLB's 30 teams. Throughout the process, the Twins have had plenty of limited partners who have shown interest in purchasing the club, a source briefed on the matter said. Limited partners can provide significant funding for some ownership groups but rarely have control over a club. Attracting anchors or lead investors, to front the smaller groups of investors, a requirement of any sale, is taking time. Advertisement In January, one person involved in the process predicted the Twins would pick a winning bidder by Opening Day. Then Ishbia bolted for the White Sox, reportedly increasing his stake in the club from 5 percent to 35 percent. 'We sort of rebooted the process and a number of people came in that were sitting on the sidelines,' they said. 'We're making good progress with multiple interested parties. Everyone we're talking with now has the capability of transacting without finding a money source. … Anyone who buys a baseball club today is doing it with the full knowledge that there'll be a (collective bargaining agreement) negotiation in another year, with some uncertainty around what the outcome will be. They're not buying it for what happens in the next two or three years. … 'You just never know how quickly it can play out. It could be very quick or it could take two or three months. It just depends on when someone gets through the right place and the right deal.' — The Athletic's Brittany Ghiroli contributed to this report.
Reuters
13-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Trail Blazers announce plans to sell franchise
May 13 - Late owner Paul Allen's estate confirmed plans to sell the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday. The sale is "consistent with Allen's directive to eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all estate proceeds to philanthropy," the Trail Blazers said in a statement posted on social media. The estate hired investment bank Allen & Company and the law firm Hogan Lovells to lead the sales process, which is expected to continue into the 2025-26 NBA season. The NBA's Board of Governors would have to ratify any purchase agreement. Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, purchased the Trail Blazers for $70 million in 1988. He died in 2018. Allen's estate also owns the NFL's Seattle Seahawks and a 25 percent stake in the Seattle Sounders of MLS but said neither of those clubs is for sale. The Trail Blazers are one of the lowest-valued teams in the league at $3.65 billion, according to CNBC's 2025 team valuations. --Field Level Media
