Multi-billionaire Jeff Bezos has interest in purchasing an NFL team and has become close with several current owners, according to league sources, and has strong support within the league to eventually join their ranks. Bezos, the Amazon mogul who also owns the Washington Post, has spend considerable time around owners, including Washington's Dan Snyder, and is in the process of moving to Washington.
Bezos is one of the richest people on the planet and watched the last Super Bowl from commissioner Roger Goodell's suite, sources said. Powerful owners like Jerry Jones believe he would be a great addition to the NFL, to say nothing of the ability to pay top dollar, in cash, for a franchise to his liking as they become available. There are not any teams currently on the market, though the Seattle Seahawks will be sold at some point following the death of Paul Allen last year, and there is considerable concern in the league office about the mounting lawsuits from various heirs to former Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, with that team possibly heading to the market in a few years as well.
Bezos' move to Washington is creating a stir in that area, as is his ties to Snyder. Snyder has been trying for years to get a state-of-the-art downtown stadium built in DC, growing increasingly frustrated by the location and age of FedEx Field. Bezos moved the Washington Post to a new location after purchasing the paper, is setting up an Amazon hub in the area and some believe could aid Snyder's pursuit of a new stadium, perhaps even with an Amazon sponsorship.
Regardless, he is someone who will be increasingly tied to potential franchise sales in the coming years, league sources said, and on a short list of those who could quickly execute a complicated transaction of that nature in short order.
