Potential owners of the Denver Broncos starting to emerge

With the Denver Broncos officially up for sale, those with deep pockets are starting to make a play to acquire the team. 

The Denver Broncos were officially put up for sale earlier this month. Pat Bowlen purchased the team back in 1984 and the Broncos have been with his family for nearly 40 years.

Following Bowlen’s death in 2019, legal jostling between the family and the Pat Bowlen Trust led to the team being put up for sale to an outside investor, something that rarely happens in the NFL. As such, the sale of the team is expected to approach the $4 billion mark, which would make it the highest sale of a sports franchise in history.

Pat Bowlen bought the Denver Broncos for $78 million

Bowlen purchased the team for quite a bit less.

Most fans will want to see either John Elway or Peyton Manning be part of a group that ends up purchasing the Broncos, but there could be several potential buyers coming forward.

Now, it seems that some of them already are.

Alec Gores, a 69-year old who is the chairman and CEO of a private equity firm known as The Gores Group, is putting together a group to purchase the Broncos, according to this report from the Los Angeles Times.

Joining Gores would be Dean Metropolous, a 75-year old who owns Hostess brands and once owned the Pabst brewing company. Matt Ishbia, 42, president and CEO of a mortgage lender would round out the potential group.

Perhaps more interesting, is the idea that media mogul Byron Allen has tossed his hat into the ring as a potential buyer. Should he become successful, Allen would be the first Black majority owner of an NFL team.

Byron Allen has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

In a statement made to Bloomberg.com, Allen had the following to say about his bid to buy the Broncos:

"“NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft came to me in November of 2019 and asked me to take a good look at buying an NFL team.And after serious consideration, I strongly believe I can help effectuate positive changes throughout the league,” Allen went on to say. “And for that reason, I will be making a bid for the Denver Broncos.”"

Allen was a standup comedian at age 14 before building his own enterprise, founding Entertainment Studios in the early 1990s and purchasing The Weather Channel in 2018. Not long after, he partnered with Sinclair to purchase Fox Sports Networks.

Allen did not reveal who may join him in his attempt to acquire the Broncos, but he is a name to keep an eye on as the sale of the franchise gets closer to becoming a reality.