The Pittsburgh Steelers have added a new pair of minority owners.
Per Bloomberg, Josh Harris and David Blitzer—co-owners of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and NHL’s New Jersey Devils—“acquired a stake of less than 5% of the Steelers earlier this year, according to two people familiar with the transaction.”
Bloomberg provides no details in terms of price, but the publication projects that Harris and Blitzer paid upwards of $140 million, “based on the $2.8 billion value Forbes estimated for the franchise last September.”
Forbes ranks the Steelers as the 14th-most valuable franchise in the NFL, its valuation up eight percent since 2018. The publication identifies the Dallas Cowboys as the most valuable of the league’s 32 teams, worth $5.5 billion, while the Buffalo Bills are deemed least valuable at $1.9 billion.
Harris and Blitzer Also Own The Prudential Center
Harris and Blitzer are no strangers to sports franchise ownership. In addition to owning the 76ers and Devils, the pair also own the Prudential Center in Newark (home of the Devils), and Harris owns a minority share of Crystal Palace, a soccer club in the English Premier League. In addition, the pair may be exploring the possibility of purchasing MLB’s New York Mets.
Bloomberg notes that “Harris and Blitzer investing [in the Steelers] may be a product of former minority owner David Tepper leaving to become the owner of the Carolina Panthers.” Per league rules, no one is allowed to own a stake in multiple NFL franchises. Bloomberg also reports that Harris and Blitzer are passive investors and will have no input on operations.
The pair join a group of minority owners that includes John Stallworth, the Hall of Fame wide receiver who played for the Steelers between 1974 and 1987 and recently reminisced about the Steelers’ Super Bowl XIV win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Steelers have been controlled by the Rooney family since the day it all began, that being May 19, 1933, the day Art Rooney Sr.’s application for a National Football League franchise was granted. Rooney paid a mere $2,500 to file the application, which was unanimously approved by the league’s Executive Committee.
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Bud Dupree’s Contract Status
In other news, the Steelers and franchise player Bud Dupree have just one month to come to an agreement on a multiyear contract extension. After July 15, 2020 at 4 p.m. New York time, a team’s franchise player “may sign only a one-year contract … for the 2020 season, and such contract cannot be extended until after the team’s last regular season game.”
The Steelers have already secured Dupree’s services for the 2020 season, as he signed his franchise tender back on April 23, the first day of the 2020 NFL draft.
Dupree and fellow outside linebacker T.J. Watt were recently named one of the Top 5 Edge Defender Duo’s in the NFL. Watt was recently named one of the 50 best NFL players entering the 2020 season.
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76ers, Devils Owners Purchase Minority Stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers