The Seattle Seahawks officially announced Wednesday morning that the Paul G. Allen Estate is beginning the process of putting the team up for sale.
In a statement the team stated:
“The Estate of Paul G. Allen today announced it has commenced a formal sale process for the Seattle Seahawks NFL franchise, consistent with Allen’s directive to eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all Estate proceeds to philanthropy.
“The Estate has selected investment bank Allen & Company and law firm Latham & Watkins to lead the sale process, which is estimated to continue through the 2026 off-season. NFL owners must then ratify a final purchase agreement.”
The announcement confirms reports that broke last month that the team would be put up for sale following the conclusion of the season.
After those reports, the estate released a statement that the Seahawks were not for sale at the moment but reiterated that the team would have to be sold eventually due to the directives in the will of Paul Allen, who bought the team in 1997 and held it until he died in Oct. 2018.
The time for the sale is now, with the announcement coming a week after the team was celebrated in a parade through the streets of Seattle for winning the second Super Bowl title in team history on Feb. 8 against the New England Patriots, 29-13.
The Seahawks are expected to fetch a record price for an NFL franchise, besting the mark of $6.05 billion of the last NFL team that was sold — the Washington Commanders in 2023.
This story will be updated.
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Bob Condotta: bcondotta@seattletimes.com. Bob Condotta is a sports reporter at The Seattle Times who primarily covers the Seahawks but also dabbles in other sports. He has worked at The Times since 2002, reporting on University of Washington Husky football and basketball for his first 10 years at the paper before switching to the Seahawks in 2013.