The San Francisco 49ers have announced the sale of a combined 6.2% ownership stake in the team to three family investors: the Khosla family, the Deeter family, and the Griffith family. All sides have indicated an enduring interest in other parties purchasing a share of the team. As of today, the York family still owns 97% of it.
Jed York, owner of the 49ers, indicated that his family receives weekly offers from people wanting to buy the team. They are ALWAYS on high demand! He said they were considering selling down their ownership stake by between 5 to 10 percent. That unlocks possibilities for more strategic partnerships to amplify the team’s business operations – on-field and off – in interesting ways.
York elaborated on the rationale behind this decision during March’s NFL league meetings, saying, “It’s just one of those things where if there’s an opportunity that makes sense, we would always explore that, but I’m not sure what we’re going to end up doing.” His comments indicate a planful approach moving forward as this ownership looks to work with clubs.
At the time of the purchase, the Khosla family bought 3.1% of the team, which is considered a controlling block. Vinod Khosla, who had co-founded Sun Microsystems, then started up Khosla Ventures in Menlo Park. He brings tremendous experience from the venture capital world.
Meanwhile, the Deeter family acquired 2.1% ownership. Byron Deeter is currently a partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, with offices in Redwood City and San Francisco. He would be a great addition to the ownership group. To close their purchase, the Griffith family bought in with a de minimis 1% interest. William Griffith, shown above, a partner at San Francisco-based Iconiq Capital, rounds out the team’s investment pedigree.
All three families have roots in venture capital. That jazzes well with the increasingly popular trend of sports teams seeking private investors that are badasses at business. Indeed, the discussions about this investment have picked up steam over the last several months and are indicative of a broader change in the NFL’s trajectory. Chargers move, this one pending. Going public or not, the Los Angeles Chargers are in active pursuit of approval to sell an 8% minority ownership share in their team. They spelled out this ambitious proposal in a memo released to NFL team owners.
Leave a Reply