Franchise values are increasing, and they’ll continue to increase. That makes it harder to find persons who can afford to purchase NFL teams.
To make it a little easier, the league has relaxed its rules for borrowing when buying the controlling interest in a team.
As reported by Mike Ozanian of Forbes, and confirmed by PFT, the NFL has increased the debt limit from $500 million to $1 billion, for someone purchasing controlling interest in a franchise. (To get controlling interest, an owner must hold at least 30 percent of the team.)
A source with knowledge of the situation tells PFT that, in order to qualify for the higher debt ceiling, the purchaser must meet certain conditions and agree to certain timelines for getting the debt down to $500 million.
Franchise values are expected to skyrocket in the coming years, thanks to legalized sports betting. Some think the average, run of the mill teams will be worth $8 billion to $10 billion. This dynamic necessarily limits the universe of qualified buyers.