The NFL witnessed its most recent franchise sale earlier this week, and the league remains in a position where (with the exception of the Packers) only private individuals are allowed to hold a stake in its teams. Commissioner Roger Goodell was recently asked about the possibility of that model changing. 
Sovereign investment in North American and European sports franchises has become in increasingly common in recent years, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) representing one of many examples of the power of foreign money. The proposed merger involving the rival PGA and LIV golf tours is one instance of the PIF’s expanding reach, something which prompted a question to Goodell about the NFL’s stance on the matter.
“We haven’t made the move as other leagues have to any kind of public investment,” Goodell said during an appearance on CNBC (via Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post, on Twitter). “It’s something we’ll contemplate at some point in time, but we really like our basic model now where we have private ownership. Those owners are in the meeting room, they’re part of the league and they’re part of our success.”
The level of interest shown in football by the PIF or similar entities remains unclear at this point, so the NFL has little urgency to explore foreign investment for the time being. Developments in that regard could be worth watching closely in other North American pro leagues, however, given the fact that many NFL owners also have a controlling stake in other franchises.
The exploding value of NFL teams has been a notable trend recently, and finances were a potential issue raised with the $6.05 billion purchase of the Commanders from the group led by Josh Harris. He assembled 20 minority partners to help fund the deal, but all majority owners are required to provide 30% of the sales price up front upon purchase. With the cost of doing so set to continue increasing considerably, the idea of foreign investors joining the league could remain a talking point for the foreseeable future, though Goodell’s remarks point to an acceptance of that being unlikely to take place soon.
Money is money.
Are we supposed to believe that no minority owner is tied to or getting funds from a foreign government? Like china?
I see this is heading in the wrong direction.
If franchises keep getting more and more expensive Saudi Arabia is going to be the only place that can afford to buy them
And you see why Goodell didn’t just simply say “no”.
Private ownership can work well but the Packers have been in existence as long as anyone else so obviously their public model is good too. The real issue to me is not the structure of the investment but accountability. The NFL is quite diligent about vetting major investors whether individuals or groups and that is a good thing.
Glazers already talking with Saudi Arabia to sell Man U, wouldn’t be a shock to see them talk about Tampa too.
On one hand, there’s money. On the other hand, there’s the uncomfortability of dealing with an economically influential foreign state. I do not foresee the Saudis attempting the same type of skullduggery with the owners that they may consider with, say, a “problem actor” in a lesser capacity, but that thought would certainly be in the owners’ minds should they consider it. I think that more of the hesitancy would come from Saudi Arabia’s capacity, as a major state government, to influence business interests later on if they don’t get what they want. This could occur in a broader sense, as well-if the U.S. as a state gets into some sort of economic dispute (major or minor) with Saudi Arabia on a national level, dealing with the local PIF representatives could get a little uncomfortable.
At the end of the day, though, there is one thing that I think that we could fairly say about Goodell, and that is that he is loyal to money. If the other owners see other PIF investments going acceptably, they may change their minds and commission Goodell to be open to the change. I don’t know how long that hypothetical good feeling would last, though.
The NFL must have started scenario planning on the matter. They are very smart businessmen.
The only public investment should be if cities give tax money to help build stadiums, the city should get a share of the teams profit.