The passing of Microsoft co-founder and Seahawks owner Paul Allen raises real questions about the future of the team. On Tuesday, SportsBusiness Daily collected various links to stories about the ownership of the team in the wake of Allen’s death at age 65, more than 20 years after he purchased the team.
Allen never married and had no children. His sister, Jody Allen, could emerge as the owner of the Seahawks and/or the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. However, it’s unclear (as reported by the Seattle Times) whether she wants to own or to run either team.
She’s more likely to keep, and to run, the Seahawks -- assuming that Paul Allen did indeed bequeath the team to her. (She’ll also need to have enough other assets to operate the team from a cash-flow standpoint.)
It’s possible that she chooses to simply cash out. It’s also possible that the will simply requires for the team to be sold.
However it shakes out, Allen did indeed save the Seahawks in Seattle, after the prior owner tried to move the team to L.A. Peter King suggested on Tuesday’s PFT Live that the stadium in Seattle should be named for Allen, given his role in keeping the team in town and ensuring the construction of a stadium that guarantees the franchise will remain there.